Snow flew in just about every direction Monday as Maine’s coastline felt the blast of a blizzard that rocked much of the Northeast, bringing wind gusts of over 50 mph in some areas.

Maine dodged the brunt of the storm, which dropped more than 2 feet of snow on Massachusetts and New York, but the fraction of the nor’easter that reached northern New England was enough to shutter schools, town offices and businesses in many of the state’s most populated communities.

The blizzard continued rattling street signs and bending trees Monday night, when snowfall totals from the National Weather Service office in Gray showed the disparity between coastal areas an inland, with South Portland receiving 6.5 inches as of 5 p.m., while Gray had 1.5 inches.

Professional weather spotters measured 5.2 inches in Saco and 3.5 inches in Buxton as of about 7 p.m., and Westbrook had received 3.5 inches by 4:30 p.m. While the Portland Jetport had recorded 3.9 inches by 1 p.m., just 1.8 inches of snow were recorded by a spotter in northwestern Portland around 3:45 p.m.

Jon Palmer, a meteorologist at the weather service office in Gray, said high winds during a blizzard make it difficult for weather spotters to take accurate measurements.

Members of the public also submitted reports to the Gray office Monday night, including 6 inches in Pittston; 4 inches in Boothbay; 3.5 inches in Bath, North Windham and Waterville; 3 inches in Gorham; and 1.5 inches in Gardiner and Fairfield.

Blizzard conditions — defined by the weather service as at least three hours of 35 mph-plus wind gusts and less than a quarter mile of visibility — were recorded at an automated station at the Portland International Jetport between 9 a.m. and noon, while the automated station in Rockland came close.

“The gusts were only 1 mile per hour off from reaching the criteria,” Palmer said. “So we basically had a blizzard in and around Rockland, too.”

The weather service’s office in Gray projected southern Maine to receive another 1 to 3 inches of snow into Monday evening, according to an afternoon alert, while the Caribou office projected another 4 to 7 inches of snow in Down East Maine before the storm’s departure.

The impacts of the storm were far less inland thanks to the storm’s trajectory, Palmer said, with little or no new snow in many areas. Early in the week, the weather service projected the storm would track far enough into the Atlantic Ocean to merely brush Maine’s coast with some light snow, but forecasts changed over the weekend.

“This was a storm where the models were very undecided, pretty much to the last minute,” Palmer said, later adding: “With how strong it is, especially over Long Island and Massachusetts, these storms tend to be very difficult to tell how far north the high snowfall amounts reach.”

WILD COASTAL WINDS

The wind along Maine’s coast on Monday was strong enough to make many chilly pedestrians freeze midstep, and it blew enough snow around to create whiteout conditions.

Weather service data as of Monday afternoon pegged the highest wind gust in Portland at 56 mph. Gusts of 40-55 mph were also recorded in Arundel, Augusta, Brunswick, Cape Elizabeth, Lewiston and Rockland.

But the highest gusts recorded as of Monday afternoon came in the Knox County town of Criehaven, at 63 mph. Only maritime stations reported winds higher than that, including a 67 mph gust off the coast of Kittery.

As the storm bore down, a swell of town offices, school districts and businesses from Kittery to Eastport closed or shortened their hours. Drivers were urged to only travel if they absolutely had to, and the speed limit on the Maine Turnpike was reduced to 45 mph.

Over 1,300 Central Maine Power customers were without power as of 5 p.m., including more than 600 in Lincoln County, 450 in York County and 150 in Cumberland County. Across the East Coast, hundreds of thousands in Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island were without power.

WARMING SHELTER NOT OPEN

Portland officials defended the decision not to open the city’s emergency warming shelter Monday, despite pressure from community organizations.

Monday’s forecast did not meet the temperature and precipitation thresholds used by the city to activate the warming shelter in the Riverside Industrial Park, according to city spokesperson Jessica Grondin. The threshold is met when the nighttime low is 15 degrees or below, or when snow accumulation is forecast to exceed 10 inches.

Nonprofit organization Maine Needs urged supporters to call on city officials to open the shelter Monday “so people don’t have to spend the night in these conditions.” While Maine Needs acknowledged the existing thresholds, it said the shelter should “also be open during a severe weather alert.”

Grondin said opening the shelter more often than planned is difficult due to staffing challenges, especially with short notice.

“While we are not able to activate the warming shelter tonight, we understand the interest in opening the shelter on more extreme weather nights that fall outside the existing thresholds, and will explore the ability to do this in the future,” Grondin said.

The shelter is scheduled to be open Tuesday night, when the overnight low is forecast to be 12 degrees.

PORTLANDERS PUSH THROUGH

From many parts of Portland’s peninsula, the display atop the Time & Temperature Building was useless Monday as the skyline was silhouetted by the storm.

Only a few people bundled in snow gear scurried along Portland’s powdered sidewalks Monday, while others sought refuge inside.

Matt Juliano, the manager at Highroller Lobster Co., said the restaurant has built a reputation for staying open during nor’easters like these — at least among the nearby hotel staff. While the restaurant had few customers Monday afternoon, Juliano said most of Highroller’s foot traffic came from guests of Old Port hotels.

Meanwhile, Portland Beer Hub stayed open for what it dubbed an “adult snow day” before deciding to close its doors early. Bartender Christopher Gatchell said the bar was “desolate” Monday, partly because of the slick sidewalks.

But Gatchell said the business remained open in the hopes of being a reliable spot for customers during the snowstorm. By later Monday afternoon, though, staff made the decision to close early, fearing the sidewalks could be even more treacherous after dark.

Out in the snow, Torrie Hazelwood walked along the Eastern Prom with her dog Svein. As the snow blew around her, she remarked that Svein loves the chilly weather — but she didn’t plan on keeping him out in it too long.

“He might not be worried about it, but I am,” Hazelwood said.

Staff Writers Andrew Rice and Morgan Womack contributed to this story.