Another storm slams New England, extending winter of discontent

March is supposed to come in like a lion and exit like a lamb. But like so many things in 2014’s winter of our discontent, that exit thing just ain’t working out like it was supposed to.

A spring storm on Wednesday brought fierce and challenging winds and snow across portions of Massachusetts and eastern Maine on Wednesday, hitting Cape Cod especially hard. Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard also were targeted by the storm, which forecasters said could drop as much as 10 inches of snow. Boston was expected to get just two inches.

The good news was that the worst of the storm was offshore in the Atlantic Ocean.

“The strong coastal storm currently off the coast of New England will continue to bring strong winds and heavy snow to coastal portions of the Northeast on Wednesday. The storm will move into the Canadian Maritimes by Thursday,” the National Weather Service noted. The service also warned of coastal flooding and beach erosion along the Massachusetts coast.

Winds were reported at better than 60 mph in some places, strong and dangerous but still less than the 74 mph considered a low-level hurricane.

On Maine’s eastern tip, Washington County was expected to be pounded by strong winds gusting to 60 mph and snowfall that could reach as high as 2 feet on Wednesday. Gov. Paul LePage ordered state offices in Washington and Hancock counties closed.

It was just days in spring and the officials end of one of the snowiest winters on record. The storm hit Washington earlier in the week with almost four inches of snow reported at Dulles International Airport and 1.7 inches at Reagan National Airport. Parts of New Jersey received more than five inches of snow.