Out like a lion: New England is getting snow at end of March

March is not going out like a lamb in parts of New England.

A major snowstorm that arrives Friday evening in Maine and New Hampshire will bring snow through much of April Fools’ Day, which is Saturday.

The National Weather Service says some places, including higher terrain between Nashua and Keene in New Hampshire, could see 12 inches (30 centimetres) of snow. In Maine, the heaviest snowfall is expected to be in the interior sections of York County, which also could see up to a foot (30 centimetres).

There’s also going to be snow in parts of Massachusetts and Vermont.

In New Hampshire, Perry Plummer, director of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said the state Emergency Operations Center opened Friday afternoon to monitor the storm and provide assistance.

A number of schools were dismissed early or cancelled after-school activities. A march for voting rights scheduled for Saturday in Concord was rescheduled for Sunday.

April snow is not unusual in northern New England. The record for Portland, Maine. was 15 inches (38 centimetres) on April 10, 1906. Fourteen inches (36 centimetres) fell on April 6, 1982.