Forecasters are warning New Hampshire residents to brace for a powerful Nor'easter that could bring strong winds and dump at least a foot of snow on parts of the state Friday.

Winter storm watches were expanded to cover the entire state Wednesday morning for the storm, which is expected to move in Friday morning and linger into Saturday.

"I think the possibility of heavy snow is pretty good. Our recommendation is to continue to stay tuned," said John Jensenius, warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine.

A low pressure system over the Northern Plains and a second over Texas are expected to merge into a powerful coastal storm off the Mid-Atlantic coast and then track northeast.

Jensenius said the southern and southeastern part of the state could see the highest snow totals with the strongest winds near the coast.