League offices and dozens of credit unions from the Carolinas toMaine were forced to close Thursday as a massive winter stormgenerated heavy snowfalls, below zero temperatures and hurricane-force winds that are expected tocause widespread power outages.

The Connecticut Credit Union League and the Cooperative CreditUnion Association, which serves credit unions in Massachusetts,Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Delaware, announced Thursdaymorning that its offices were closed, but that its staff memberswere working from home to service members.

“Due to the inclement weather throughout the East Coast, theCooperative Credit Union Association is operating in a businesscontinuity mode today,” the CCUA said in a prepared statement.“Staff will be working remotely to assist credit unions throughoutthe day, receiving e-mails and voice mails in a business-as-usualmanner.”

The Connecticut league also said its staff employees wereworking from their homes to serve their members.

Dozens of credit unions in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, NewHampshire, Delaware, South Carolina and other states closedbranches and call centers for the day, while some credit unionsannounced they would be closing later on Thursday and others shutdown only some locations in their branch network.

Eastern Massachusetts and most of Rhode Island may see as muchas 18 inches of snow, and the National Weather Service warned ofwind gusts hitting near 70 mph, the Associated Press reported.

What's more, the National Weather Service posted possibleblizzard conditions for parts of Delaware, Virginia and Maryland;coastal New Jersey; eastern Long Island, and New England's easterncoast.

New York's largest credit union, the $7.2 billion BethpageFederal Credit Union, closed all of its branches and offices, andso did a number of credit unions on Long Island and throughout NewYork City.

Even though the $2.6 billion Municipal Credit Union in New YorkCity and the $1.4 billion Melrose Credit Union in Briarwoodannounced they were open for business Thursday morning, theyexpected to close shop early.

The snowstorm also forced the $1.6 billion South CarolinaFederal Credit Union in North Charleston to close all of itsbranches except for its branch in Columbia. Other credit unions inSouth Carolina such the $2.1 billion Founders CU in Lancaster, the$1.4 billion Sharonview FCU in Fort Mill, and the $1 billion SAFEFCU delayed opening their branches Thursday.