Tom Hawley, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Gray, said wind gusts in Portland were as high as 64 mph as the outer edges of the massive storm hit Maine.

By 8 p.m., winds in the Twin Cities were averaging 20 mph with gusts between 35 and 40 mph. Hawley said the majority of damage would come between 8 p.m. Monday and about 2 a.m. Tuesday when winds started to die down.

As of early Tuesday morning, CMP reported 6,701 customers without power in Oxford County, 2,930 in Androscoggin County, 955 in Franklin County and 36,124 in Cumberland County.

The wind seemed to be intensifying.

Maine emergency officials were not expecting much havoc Monday night, but they were getting ready anyway.

Gov. Paul LePage said emergency management officials have been preparing for the storm since last week and have been meeting daily.

LePage signed a limited emergency declaration Monday, allowing CMP and other electricity providers to get repair crews in place.

But LePage, speaking at an afternoon press conference with Maine Emergency Management Director Rob McAleer, said he was hopeful that some of those crews wouldn’t be needed.

“If everything goes according to the tracking, the likelihood is tomorrow we’ll probably be releasing some of those crews to go help down in the other states,” LePage said. “We’re hoping we’re not going to get hit as bad. If we do, they’ll stay here.”

Weather forecasters predicted the storm would land a glancing blow on Maine. Coastal communities were expected to be hardest hit, with potential for flooding.

“It’s going to be like a bad nor’easter,” said Margaret Curtis, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gray. “We’ll see power outages, trees down on wires and lawn furniture thrown about. It’ll be raining the whole time and by the end of the week we should have one to three inches of rain.”

In Auburn, public works crews prepared by inspecting storm drains around the city, making sure they were clear and able to handle heavy rains.

But Auburn City Manager Clint Deschene said preparations for the storm started long ago — long before this particular storm was ever on the radar.

“We’ve been preparing all summer long, cutting down old trees and removing branches and getting rid of the things we know will be problems,” Deschene said. “As far as what we’re going today, it’s clearing (drains) in case we get high water.”

Lewiston Public Works Director Dave Jones said his crews were also inspecting catch basins and known flooding areas. And they were getting ready for the inevitable cleanup once the storm passes Tuesday.

“We had the guys get out the equipment, the chain saws and chippers and generators, to make sure they’re all up and working,” Jones said. “We tested the City Hall and Public Works generators to make sure they were working, so those offices can stay open.”

Emergency officials are also gearing up in case the storm is worse than predicted. Auburn’s Park Avenue Elementary School will be the emergency shelter for Lewiston and Auburn. Auburn Police Chief Phil Crowell said it won’t be open unless it’s necessary. People who lose power should call the Lewiston-Auburn 911 Center’s non-emergency line at 784-7331 to find out if the shelter is open.

“We have geared up now, and if it becomes necessary, we will send people out to canvass areas and let them know the center is open,” Crowell said. “We have buses if we need to evacuate people, just in case.”

Emergency Numbers

— Lewiston-Auburn 911 Center non-emergency line: 784-7331

— Androscoggin County Emergency Management Agency: 784-0147