Governor announces state office and school closures as heavy snow hampers travel
January 25, 2026 | Office of the Governor, Constitutional Offices, Organizations, Executive, Connecticut
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The governor announced that state office buildings and schools will be closed tomorrow as a fast-moving winter storm drops about 2 to 3 inches of snow per hour and strains plowing operations.
The decision came during an evening press briefing in which state officials urged residents to avoid travel. "Stay off the road," the governor said. "Stay off the road." The governor said roughly 650 plows and additional contractors are working the storm and that crews will prioritize major thoroughfares before municipal side streets.
Connecticut Department of Transportation official Garrett Ugolito said DOT crews were called in around 4:30 a.m. and will remain on duty until the storm and cleanup are complete. "Our crews did come in this morning. They got the call around 04:30," Ugolito said, adding that while major interstates are being cleared first, side roads often take longer. He warned that a single crash by a commercial vehicle can block a highway for hours and said DOT has not yet decided on any statewide commercial-vehicle travel ban: "We don't know at this time," he said.
State Police Colonel Lachman gave the incident totals reported so far: "We've had 51 non-injury crashes," he said, and added there were two injury crashes and roughly 135 other traffic-related calls for service. He described a significant bus crash on I-95 that included a fire and resulted in about five people being transported to hospitals.
Director Turner, speaking for state health/emergency partners, said there had been no reports so far of non-traffic injuries or fatalities related to snow shoveling or exposure: "As of right now, we have not had any reports," Turner said, while noting injuries sometimes increase as people begin clearing snow after the storm.
State emergency operations staff, identified in the briefing as Brenda (surname not provided), said the virtual State Emergency Operations Center has been active since 10 a.m. and that utilities and nonprofit partners are coordinating. She cited a 2-1-1 report that there are 221 warming centers in 77 towns to help people who need shelter or transportation. Brenda said Eversource reported about 528 customers without power, concentrated in Mansfield and Thompson, and United Illuminating had one outage.
Officials emphasized that response times are slower because of weather conditions and that troopers and DOT crews are cycling shifts to keep coverage. The briefing concluded after a short media Q&A; officials again urged residents to avoid unnecessary travel and to call 2-1-1 for shelter information.
The press conference adjourned with the governor thanking emergency staff and interpreters and repeating the safety message to stay off the roads.
The decision came during an evening press briefing in which state officials urged residents to avoid travel. "Stay off the road," the governor said. "Stay off the road." The governor said roughly 650 plows and additional contractors are working the storm and that crews will prioritize major thoroughfares before municipal side streets.
Connecticut Department of Transportation official Garrett Ugolito said DOT crews were called in around 4:30 a.m. and will remain on duty until the storm and cleanup are complete. "Our crews did come in this morning. They got the call around 04:30," Ugolito said, adding that while major interstates are being cleared first, side roads often take longer. He warned that a single crash by a commercial vehicle can block a highway for hours and said DOT has not yet decided on any statewide commercial-vehicle travel ban: "We don't know at this time," he said.
State Police Colonel Lachman gave the incident totals reported so far: "We've had 51 non-injury crashes," he said, and added there were two injury crashes and roughly 135 other traffic-related calls for service. He described a significant bus crash on I-95 that included a fire and resulted in about five people being transported to hospitals.
Director Turner, speaking for state health/emergency partners, said there had been no reports so far of non-traffic injuries or fatalities related to snow shoveling or exposure: "As of right now, we have not had any reports," Turner said, while noting injuries sometimes increase as people begin clearing snow after the storm.
State emergency operations staff, identified in the briefing as Brenda (surname not provided), said the virtual State Emergency Operations Center has been active since 10 a.m. and that utilities and nonprofit partners are coordinating. She cited a 2-1-1 report that there are 221 warming centers in 77 towns to help people who need shelter or transportation. Brenda said Eversource reported about 528 customers without power, concentrated in Mansfield and Thompson, and United Illuminating had one outage.
Officials emphasized that response times are slower because of weather conditions and that troopers and DOT crews are cycling shifts to keep coverage. The briefing concluded after a short media Q&A; officials again urged residents to avoid unnecessary travel and to call 2-1-1 for shelter information.
The press conference adjourned with the governor thanking emergency staff and interpreters and repeating the safety message to stay off the roads.
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