A massive spring blizzard is bearing down on the Maritimes, forcing widespread school closures and flight cancellations as officials warn of heavy snow, strong wind gusts and powerful storm surges.

Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island are forecasted to see the greatest amounts of snow – up to 40 centimetres in some areas.

New Brunswick will see less snow but strong winds are expected to result in widespread whiteout conditions and power outages across the province.

There are long lists of flight delays and cancellations at Maritime airports and travelers are urged to check their flight status before heading to the airport.

“Our guys and our ladies will be out there on the runway and the taxiways, keeping them as clear as they can to make the recovery later today or tomorrow as easy as possible,” said Peter Spurway, spokesperson for the Halifax Stanfield International Airport.

The storm shut down most Maritime schools and universities, as well as several businesses, restaurants and shopping malls.

Most government services and offices closed for the day and the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation closed several of its retail stores across the province.

All ferry services in the region were suspended, including the ferries that link Nova Scotia with Newfoundland.

Strong winds are causing widespread power outages across Nova Scotia. Close to 15,000 Nova Scotia Power customers in several communities were without power as of 4:30 p.m.

More than 1,600 NB Power customers were without power in the Fredericton, Sussex and St. Stephen areas as of 4:30 p.m.

In P.E.I., Maritime Electric was dealing with outages across the island when the weather turned so foul that the utility pulled its crews off the road.

In the early evening, the Hillsborough Bridge, the main span on the western outskirts of Charlottetown, was closed due to whiteout conditions.

A winter parking ban is in effect in the Halifax area; motorists are asked to keep their vehicles off streets from 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. to allow for snow removal operations.

Metro Transit pulled its buses from Halifax-area roads by 1 p.m. It says bus service will be suspended until Thursday.

The storm reached its peak in Halifax early Wednesday afternoon when tiny shards of wind-whipped snow cut sideways around every corner.

"I don't mind as long as it all melts when it's done," a woman named Chantel said as she shielded her face from the icy wind. "It's probably the worst one I've been through."

In Fredericton, Melynda Jarrett displayed the typically grim resolve Maritimers need to make it through the prolonged winter weather.

"I am so depressed about this weather, but you just have to laugh otherwise you'll just curl up in a ball and start crying," she said as the snow swirled around her. "Hopefully this is the end of it."

Strong winds and blowing snow are causing widespread whiteout conditions and police in all three Maritime provinces are encouraging motorists to stay off the roads.

Sean Irvine, director of provincial operations with the Nova Scotia Emergency Management Office, is also encouraging people to stay home.

"Stay off the roads to allow snow clearance operations to be undertaken efficiently and so we can keep people safe," said Irvine.

Irvine said warnings about the storm, which started last weekend, helped people prepare.

"We do know that most people have taken our advice and have stayed off the road and most businesses are closed down and people are staying at home, which is good news," he said.

Environment Canada is warning residents along Nova Scotia's coastline to stay away from the water and prepare for potentially damaging storm surges.

“Later tonight, when the winds pick up after lunch and we’ve got sustained winds for a number of hours, we are expecting a storm surge, and we are expecting that along the South Shore and along the Northumberland Strait along from Pictou east straight up to Cape Breton Island,” Irvine told CTV News.

“That is coinciding in and around high tide, so that means that those areas that are low-lying, that are prone to storm surge, in all likelihood can expect storm surge activity tonight and moving ice around and pushing rocks and things up onto roadways.”

Barb Baillie, executive director of operations with Nova Scotia's Transportation Department, said salt trucks and plows would be working around the clock in two, 12-hour shifts.

"It's pretty well the same across the province -- very low traffic," Baillie said.

"We are experiencing severe whiteouts. Plow operators are having to pull over for a few minutes just so they can see where they are going."

A section of the Trans-Canada Highway west of Truro to Moncton was closed Wednesday evening due to poor visibility.

Prince Edward Island's Office of Public Safety advised residents to prepare for the possibility of power disruptions, while the provincial government closed all civil service offices for the day.

With files from The Canadian Press