AUGUSTA - Central Maine Power Co. crews are prepared to deal with the messy winter storm that began late this afternoon.

CMP spokesman John Carroll said that the company is expecting mixed precipitation, including some icing.

"People can see the damage storms like this can do, and they understand they can cause outages," Carroll said. "Our crews will be there to put things back together, but we hope people will also take some simple steps to keep themselves safe and comfortable."

CMP advises people to keep battery-operated flashlights, drinking water and nonperhisable foods on hand. Keep fuels away from wood stoves, and never use grills or camp stoves indoors, the company said.