Snow and rain create scenic but slippery Thanksgiving, complicating travel

FRYEBURG (WGME) — A mix of snow and rain fell quickly in Fryeburg, creating slower travel conditions for those heading to Thanksgiving dinner.

But the wintry scenery was welcomed by many.

Matt Boner, visiting from Florida, couldn’t have been happier with the snowy Thanksgiving.

“This is what I asked for. This is my fault,” he said. “I prayed for this. This is what I came for.”

But the snow and slush made for tricky travel, and a busy day for Fryeburg emergency responders.

“We’ve had a couple of incidents this morning, and there’s been several in southern Oxford County since the snow started,” said Fryeburg Fire Chief Andy Dufresne.

Thursday morning, a car slid off snow-covered Route 113 and flipped over. No one was injured in the crash, but as crews worked to clean up the scene, they narrowly avoided another wreck.

“Get out of the way! Get out of the way!” an emergency responder shouted as another car slid toward the scene.

“It’s a very wet snow, so once it gets driven on, it becomes really slick,” Dufresne said.

Those road conditions had holiday travelers taking precautions.

“I’m just going to go slow, take it easy,” said Belinda Pinnette, who was driving from East Conway, N.H., to Kennebunk for Thanksgiving dinner. “If it gets scary, I’ll just pull over and take my time.”

For those who made it safely to their Thanksgiving meal, a picture-perfect holiday was one more thing to be thankful for.

“It’s nice and festive, and it’s peaceful,” said Abby Korman, who is visiting Fryeburg from Massachusetts.

“Knocking things off the list—building a snowman, snowballs, snowball fights, here comes another! Sledding, you know, all those things,” said Boner.

The plows are out on the roads in Oxford County, but Dufresne said they are having trouble keeping up with the snowfall. Drivers are urged to stay cautious and drive slow this Thanksgiving.