No snow, no show: With predictions of deep snow, many stayed home Tuesday

The weather false alarm, with predicted snowfall not matching reality, prompted several schools to close and more workers than usual to embrace the remote option Tuesday.

The result of the weather that wasn't: Quiet roadways and stores. Plow drivers, it seemed, had the run of the roads. No school buses. Few commuters.

More: How much snow fell in Worcester County? View the latest town-by-town totals

Monday morning, the forecast indicated Worcester could get from 8 to 18 inches of snow. By early that afternoon, a southward shift of the storm had meteorologists lowering their expectations.

In anticipation of heavy snow, officials in Worcester, Shrewsbury, Southbridge, Fitchburg and a few other districts in the region canceled school for Tuesday.

There was some confusion about school status in the Narragansett Regional School District, which covers Templeton and Phillipston. It appears a "no school" notice inadvertently went out on official social media. In fact, there was school in the district Tuesday. The matter was clarified on the district Facebook page, with a yellow note reading, "Oops!"

With sidewalks mostly empty, some stores in downtown Worcester closed for the day including Brew on the Grid coffee shop and Midtown Mall.

In Main South, footprints on snowy sidewalks were clues of earlier travelers. One sidewalk had a telltale sign that Michael Richard has passed through. He's a homeless man who carries his possessions in a folding grocery cart. Tire tracks from the cart proved he was undaunted by the elements.

"I never let snow or anything stop me," said an unfazed Richard, detailing a recipe for warmth that includes three pairs of pants and five shirts. Simply put: "Layers."

Weather CBS Boston list of school closings

In Fitchburg, a parking ban was lifted after it became apparent the storm would not be as bad as first thought. Newly minted Mayor Samantha M. Squailia made the decision early Tuesday, once learning that the snowfall would be minimal.

"We don’t want to keep a parking ban going if we’re not going to have a problem,” said Squailia, working from her office at an otherwise-quiet Fitchburg City Hall. Municipal offices were closed.

While most shops were closed in Shrewsbury, plenty of cars and snowplows were out.

Two snowplows cleared snow and standing water out of the White City Shopping Center parking lot as a Shaw's employee salted the pavement in front of the store.

Shaw's employee Lily DaMaceno said it was a slow day at work. DaMaceno is an online shopper for Shaw's and said there were more online orders Tuesday than in-person customers.

"Usually, we're a pretty hectic department. It's really like go, go, go but today it's not that bad," DaMaceno said. "There's still orders coming in but (the number is) in the single digits."

Worcester City Hall was closed for the day and trash pickup in the city was canceled.

All branches of the state Registry of Motor Vehicles, including Worcester, were closed Tuesday.

Ahead of the storm, Massachusetts Gov. Maura T. Healey told all non-essential Executive Branch employees to not report to work Tuesday.

On Route 2 east in Westminster, a crash involving a plow truck left a Gardner man with serious injuries. The crash occurred about 9 a.m. Tuesday in the eastbound lanes.

According to state police, a Toyota Camry driven by a 20-year-old Gardner man collided with a dump truck driven by a 30-year-old Leominster man. The plow was privately owned.

The driver of the Camry was eventually transported by LifeFlight helicopter to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, state police said.

-With Associated Press reports.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester to get less snow than first thought; school called off for Tuesday