A day after a record-setting snowstorm created havoc on the roads, kept thousands of schoolchildren and workers home and shut down all but the most essential functions of state and local government, residents of southern Wisconsin are awaking today to the second hard fact of winter in the Midwest: bitter cold.

Temperatures were not expected to rise above 7 with wind chills of 10- to 20-below zero, according to the National Weather Service, making life unpleasant for workers still battling the foot or more of snow that fell Tuesday and Wednesday and likely ensuring ice- and snow-covered streets for days or weeks to come.

"That was one of our biggest concerns," George Dreckmann of the Madison Streets Division said Wednesday night, "the drop in temperatures and the wind."

Gov. Jim Doyle declared a pre-emptive state of emergency Tuesday night, calling in the National Guard and requiring the state to help in response and recovery efforts. It can also be a first step toward asking the federal government for help with storm-related costs.

State Emergency Management spokeswoman Lori Getter said that's a decision that hasn't been made yet.

"We'll probably take a look at that later this week," she said, after final snow totals and cleanup costs come in from around the state.

Dane County already thinks it's a good idea. County Executive Kathleen Falk signed an emergency declaration Wednesday, saying in a statement that "my action supports the governor's request for federal assistance."

Wind chill advisory

The weather service station in Sullivan canceled a blizzard warning for much of southern Wisconsin on Wednesday afternoon, but a wind chill advisory remains in effect in south-central Wisconsin and strong winds remain a danger, according to meteorologist Chris Franks.

"We're just really not seeing the widespread wind gusts" that would merit a blizzard declaration, Franks said.

The wind chill advisory will be in effect until 11 a.m. today, which is expected to be partly sunny. The low tonight could get down to minus-3.

Snowblower injuries

Spokespeople for UW, St. Mary's and Meriter hospitals said emergency rooms were relatively quiet Wednesday morning, but there was at least one person in for a heart attack brought on by shoveling.

Steve Van Dinter, spokesman for St. Mary's Hospital, said the emergency room had seven amputations already from snowblower accidents.

"It's all guys," he said. "Fingertips are gone or even worse."

Mae Knowles, a spokeswoman for Meriter Hospital, said the emergency room also received at least three people with "severe lacerations" to their hands from trying to clear obstructions from snowblowers.

County dispatch centers and the State Patrol reported numerous vehicle crashes Tuesday and Wednesday - mostly people running off icy roads - but there were no reported fatalities.

Plowing, more plowing

Dreckmann said Wednesday night that the wind, cold and the sheer volume of snow will keep crews plowing longer than after a typical storm. Sand and a product called Ice Slicer are being applied to salt routes, he said, because salt doesn't work at very low temperatures.

"We are going to continue to do as much plowing as we can," he said. "We are hoping that before the end of the night, we will have opened up everything."

Madison was under a snow emergency again Wednesday and Dreckmann said he "wouldn't be surprised if we added another day."

Power outages

Scores of utility repair crews shuttled from one downed line to another Tuesday and Wednesday, trying to restore power to about 32,000 customers of Madison's two major utility companies whose electricity was knocked out by the storm.

Madison Gas & Electric reported a total of 7,000 customers without power, mainly east and south of Lake Monona, spokesman Steve Kraus said. All but a couple hundred had power again by Wednesday night. He said it would probably take until early today to get the electricity reconnected in all of the outage areas.

Snow-laden power lines that collapsed, and tree limbs, caked with snow, that snapped off and fell onto power lines left 25,000 customers of Wisconsin Power & Light without electricity at some point during the storm, with reports of outages starting about 10 p.m. Tuesday.

"I think the biggest problem is the fact that it's so scattered. It's just taken a lot of time to get everywhere, combined with the roads. They're still not the greatest," WPL spokesman Scott Reigstad said.

School closings

Madison schools were closed Wednesday but the district was not expected to determine whether schools will be open today until around 5:30 a.m.

In the meantime, district workers on Wednesday staffed 12 snowplow routes to clear parking lots and sidewalks at the district's 43 elementary and middle schools. Clearing smaller sidewalks, steps and entry ways is the responsibility of the custodial staff at each school, said spokesman Ken Syke. High schools have their own plowing equipment for sidewalks and parking lots.

"The report I'm getting is that it's very slow going, because it's a wet, heavy snow," Syke said midday Wednesday. "The grounds crew will be knocking off around 3:30 or 4 this afternoon because some will be starting again at midnight."

Other area districts, including Mount Horeb and Verona, also took a wait-and-see approach whether to open today. Middleton-Cross Plains is expected to be open.

UW-Madison, Edgewood College and Madison Area Technical College were all re-opening after being closed Wednesday.

Government offices

City of Madison, Dane County and state government offices were closed Wednesday, but all were expected to be open today. Employees were urged to use their own judgment and contact their supervisor if local conditions would make it difficult to safely make it to work on time.

State Department of Administration spokeswoman Carla Vigue said it was difficult Wednesday, with nearly all state offices closed, to confirm the last time the state had taken such a step. Veterans in state government struggled to remember any precedent to a total shutdown of the state.

"I can't think of a time right now in my 50-year career where state government was totally shut down," said Senate President Fred Risser, D-Madison, who has served in the Legislature for more than a half-century.

Tree damage

Wednesday's snow had all 22 city of Madison arborists out removing downed limbs and trees from roadways and cutting hanging limbs from trees - some starting as early as 2:30 a.m. The forestry department logged about 170 calls - the most related to a snowstorm in the past 12 years, said Marla Eddy, city of Madison forester. To put that in perspective, the forestry section received 500 calls in one day after a severe July windstorm in 2007, she said.

Eddy said crews will continue removing downed limbs and partially hanging branches for the remainder of the week.

Madison residents should call 608-266-4816 if a city tree - one between the sidewalk and the street - is blocking the street or has broken branches.

Snowmobile trails open

Snowmobile trails are open in three-quarters of Dane County, Parks Director Darren Marsh said.

Still closed because of the late corn harvest is the southwest quadrant of the county, bordered on the north by Highway 18/151 and east by Highway 14. That includes the Military Ridge Trail.

For more information and any future updates, call 608-242-4576 or visit www.countyofdane.com/lwrd/parks. Trail information is updated at 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Made it to the game

Rick Stach of Appleton made it to the Resch Center in Ashwaubenon Wednesday night for the University of Wisconsin men's basketball team's game with UW-Green Bay after starting his day in Sacramento, Calif.

He took a plane to Minneapolis and got on a connecting flight to Madison and arrived around 3 p.m.

"I drove for about three hours, picked up my friend Bob Sullivan at the end of his road and drove up (to Green Bay) for the game," said Stach, who is the father-in-law of UW assistant director of athletic communications, Patrick Herb.

Stach began his business trip last Thursday after attending UW's 73-69 win over Duke at the Kohl Center last Wednesday night. He parked his car at the Dane County Regional Airport and flew to Seattle before ending his trip in Sacramento.

Stach said the roads to Green Bay weren't bad. "One lane was open all the way. Nobody was on the road, though," he said.

The Badgers lost 88-84 in overtime.