AFTER THE

Register staff Connecticut residents were told to stay homeWednesday, and for the most part they listened, perhaps enjoyinggrilled cheese and tomato soup, as Gov. Dannel P. Malloy suggested,rather than braving 2 feet or more of snow.

The result was a relatively quiet day, with most schools and manyoffices and stores closed, and thousands of drivers staying off theroads, giving state and municipal road crews space to clear thesnow.

"Connecticut will be open for business tomorrow. We're confidentof that," the governor said during a 6 p.m. briefing Wednesday.

He thanked the media for helping to get the word out thatofficials urged people to stay off the roads, if at all possible.

There was one fatality in a crash involving a CT Transit bus andtwo other vehicles, although it was not immediately clear if weatherwas a factor.

Once the snow moved on to Maine and points east, the temperaturesbegan to fall, and today is expected to be frigid. News 8's SteveVillanueva predicted 18-degree temperatures overnight on theshoreline and 13 degrees inland, rising to about 33 today.

North Haven appeared to be the winner of the snowfallsweepstakes, with at least 30 inches of new snow, a state record.

It was the third significant snowfall of the season, after theChristmas blizzard and last weekend's relatively minor event. ByWednesday evening, New Haven, West Haven and Old Saybrook announcedthat schools would be closed a second day today.

"I want to thank everyone for heeding our warnings. ... Thank youfor staying home," Malloy said Wednesday afternoon, as the snowbegan letting up in the New Haven area. "It's a great day to sharerecipes on the Internet. Actually I wish I was home cooking. Grilledcheese sandwiches and Campbell's tomato soup is a good combination.I recommend that to everybody. Please stay off the roads."

Malloy, in office one week, said the state was doing "remarkablywell" in coping with the heaviest snowstorm of the season, and askedresidents to stay off the roads and "let us do our job."

Mel Goldstein, meteorologist at News 8 (WTNH-TV), said, "I'mbeside myself. I can't contain myself" as he looked at the snowfalltotals. The 30 inches that fell in North Haven in 24 hours was"challenging the Blizzard of 1888," he said, when the same amountfell in one day (although there was more wind and ultimately 50inches of snow fell during the blizzard almost 123 years ago).

Even those without a permanent home were able to stay out of thebrutal weather Wednesday. Kendra Hayden at the Columbus Houseshelter said everyone staying there was kept inside Wednesday."Everyone is warm and inside," she said.

Jameca Malloy, program manager at Emergency Shelter ManagementServices, formerly known as Immanuel Baptist Shelter, said theshelter was about at capacity with 71 people staying there. LikeColumbus House, Malloy said her shelter let the men stay all day.Usually they have to leave by 7:30 a.m. "It's nice for the guys tohave a chance to sleep in," she said.

New Haven Mayor John DeStefano Jr. said the city fared prettywell in the storm.

"I think by midmorning we only had five accidents and maybe 10stranded motorists," he said.

DeStefano said most downtown businesses took the day off, whichalso helped. Still, department heads manned an emergency managementcenter downtown to coordinate storm response.

During the night, when parking bans are in effect, city plowswere focusing on removing snow and clearing intersections downtown.Secondary streets have been plowed but will get more attentiontoday, DeStefano said.

"The challenge is the older neighborhoods have narrow streets andnot a lot of off-street parking," he said. The mayor urged people tobe patient.

"This is a lot of snow. It fell all at once. It was a bit of achallenge because we already had snow on the ground," he said.

The city estimates 19 inches of snow blanketed New Haven.

The New Haven Parking Authority offered free or $3 parking atseveral city lots and garages. Parking will be banned on even-numbered sides of residential streets.

State Department of Transportation spokesman Kevin Nursick saidthere were 632 state plows and 220 contracted plows on the roads,which were able to keep the roads clear. "By and large this wouldhave been a completely different storm if people were taking to theroads as they normally would have been," he said.

The DOT reported a jackknifed tractor-trailer on Interstate 84eastbound between exits 26 and 27 in Cheshire at 1:47 p.m., closingthe right lane.

The electric utilities were not experiencing major problems.Connecticut Light & Power had a maximum of 3,100 customers withoutpower. United Illuminating Co. reported just two outages.

The powerful storm forced hundreds of flight cancellations andsnarled travel across the region, with Amtrak suspending servicebetween New York City and Boston because of damage to the overheadpower system south of Boston. The Metro-North commuter railroad wasrunning on a Sunday schedule and the Waterbury and Danbury lineswere suspended.

New Haven officials were reaching out to any residents who havelost heat or other utilities because of the storm. Residents cancall the city's Livable City Initiative at 203-946-6237 for housing,heat or utility issues. For snow-related emergency questions,residents can call the Emergency Operations Center at 203-946-8224.For general New Haven snow information and closing, residents cancall 203-946-7669 (SNOW).

Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks remained open, butwas closing periodically Wednesday to clear the main runway. TweedNew Haven Regional Airport shut down.

In Branford, as in many other communities, police andfirefighters were busy with medical calls but had few majoraccidents or serious crimes to contend with. "We've had just severalmedical calls so far," said Branford Fire Chief John J. Ahern.

"I had one 84-year-old man call because he needed to get out ofhis house so he could go to breakfast ... because that's what hedoes every day," Ahern said.

Milford Fire Capt. Chris Zak pointed out that heavy snow canbring hidden dangers. He asked people to ensure that the areasaround fire hydrants are clear of snow.

Hamden Mayor Scott D. Jackson rode in the cab of a snowplowdriven by public works union President Dean Colaiacovo, and got aneducation. "It was one of the most instructional and pragmaticsessions I've ever had," said Jackson, who took a tour of town roadslate Wednesday morning. "I learned a lot about the multitude ofthings they have to look out for and the many roles they have. Theybecome emergency workers the instant they get into the plow,"Jackson said.

Another official learning about winter road-clearing was NorthHaven First Selectman Michael J. Freda. A town snowplow was stuck onthe hills of Sentinel Hill Road. A plow driven by Mike Maturo cameto the rescue, with Freda riding shotgun. "It was so bad we had tohelp out our own plow that was stuck. We had to push it out fromwhere it was stuck," Freda said.

Drivers who can't find their cars parked on the street may notfind them buried under the snow. In most communities, parking bansruled. "There is absolutely no parking on any street in town," saidNorth Branford Town Manager Richard Branigan said. "If they did,they would be towed already because we have zero tolerance duringthis type of event.

"There's too much snow and there was previous snow, so there's noplace to put it," Branigan said.

And winter is far from over. More snow is predicted for Saturday.