This story was updated at 3 pm following a Newtown Emergency Operations meeting with key local officials.

By 11 am Friday, March 9, Newtown Highway Department personnel along with Eversource line and tree crews had cleared all but 17 roads in town, down from 38 roadways that were still impassable or unsafe as darkness fell Thursday evening. And as a group of local officials were meeting at the town's Emergency Operations Center around 2 pm, that number of road closures had dwindled down to about a dozen with several more expected to open by evening.

, and parts of town experienced wind gusts up to 50 miles per hour, weighing down or snapping trees and often taking electrical, telecom, and cabled utility services with them.up to 24 inches of heavy wet snowfall in

Wednesday's nor'easterThose town and utility crews continued working in tandem Friday after areas of Newtown reportedly received

On Thursday morning at 9 am, more than 11,300 Newtown electrical customers were in the dark although that number was closer to or over 2,000 at the height of the storm. That number was down to about 770 by 3 pm Friday, according to an Eversource outage map.

Public Works Director Fred Hurley told

The Newtown Bee that by 1 pm Friday, the only local roads remaining closed would be because blockages involved electrical wires, and said a short time later that several areas of widespread power outages should expect to be reconnected by nightfall Friday.

Officials decided to open Newtown High School Friday evening at 6 pm for anyone needing to recharge mobile devices, or who would like to access showers. Residents are asked to bring their own towels, soap, and shampoo, as none would be available at the school.

The high school will also be open Saturday, March 10 from 7 am to 11 pm, and Sunday from 7 am to 10 pm if residents require access to shower. Signs at the front door will direct any residents to where charging access and showers are located, as limited school personnel will be on hand.

First Selectman Dan Rosenthal said he was hopefully optimistic about crews resolving road closures and utility outages affecting limited areas in short order, and said he would put out a new community advisory later Friday after a planned afternoon meeting with local officials and utility representatives involved in the restoration efforts.

"I've been communicating regularly with Eversource, which has dispatched multiple crews in town," the first selectman said. "I was surprised when I got up this morning and saw the outage numbers down substantially since yesterday."

Mr Rosenthal said some outages might continue in the weekend, but he believes that most or all large areas of outage are already restored or will be soon.

"Thursday was strictly a 'make safe' situation," he said, reminding residents that Newtown highway crews and town vendors cannot touch downed trees if they are touching downed electrical wires.

"I was happy to see several situations where utility crews stayed on the scene after de-energizing wires, so our crews could clear the trees, and then Eversource crews immediately jumped back in restoring power once those trees were cleared," he said. "They just weren't all marking trees to clear as safe and then moving on."

Mr Hurley said he was grateful for the assistance of several Eversource crews who worked alongside Highway Dept personnel through the night, as well as one dedicated crew that was working to restore only single home outages.

schools were closed for a third day, while power continued to be restored.

Public

Check back or visit The Newtown Bee's Facebook Page for the most immediate updates on storm restoration.

[naviga:img class="aligncenter wp-image-308804" src="https://newtownbee.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/SH_March-9-snow-Sandy-Hook-Center.jpg" alt="Heavy snow swirls in Sandy Hook Center Wednesday, March 7, as a hearty nor'easter bore down on Newtown leaving areas with up to 24 inches of sloppy, wet precipitation that also took down trees and power wires, initially leaving more than 1,000 residents in the dark. Only a little more than a dozen roads in town remained impassable by 1 pm Friday, March 9. (Bee Photo, Hicks)" width="900" height="272" /]

Heavy snow swirls in Sandy Hook Center Wednesday, March 7, as a hearty nor'easter bore down on Newtown leaving areas with up to 24 inches of sloppy, wet precipitation that also took down trees and power wires, initially leaving more than 1,000 residents in the dark. Only a little more than a dozen roads in town remained impassable by 1 pm Friday, March 9. 

-Bee Photo, Hicks

[naviga:img class="aligncenter wp-image-308921" src="https://newtownbee.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/March-7-snow-8-foot-snowman-on-Valley-Field-Road-South.jpg" alt="March 7 snow -- 8 foot snowman on Valley Field Road South" width="800" height="533" /]

A young man named Anthony puts the final touches on an 8-plus-foot-tall snowman he built Wednesday night, on the cul-de-sac of Valley Field Road South. The 11-year-old took advantage of great packing snow that came during Wednesday's storm. 

-Jeff Gewert photo