UNDATED (WHBL) - Most of Wisconsin is digging out from one of the heaviest snow-storms in years. Twenty-inches fell just southwest of Madison. Middleton had 19-and-a-half inches, and Beaver Dam 18. Hartford had 16 inches, and strong winds reduced visibilities to a half-mile. Portage had almost 16 inches. Many tree branches fell in Lake Mills under the weight of 15-inches of snow, and the winds produced drifts of up to three-feet. Platteville had 14 inches, and Neenah 11. The storm has headed east, and the Milwaukee area was about the only place where it was still snowing at three a-m. Winds remained strong, with gusts up to 43 miles an hour in Fond du Lac. Areas near Lake Michigan were, for the most part, spared in terms of accumulating snow. Precipitation on Thursday alternated between snow and rain. Overnight, as the temperatures dropped, it changed to all snow and there were a few inches of accumulation.Power outages are still a problem. We Energies had almost 19-thousand electric customers still in the dark as of three this morning, including 15-thousand in Metro Milwaukee. Wisconsin Power-and-Light said it had over 12-thousand customers in the dark overnight – mostly in Fond du Lac, Walworth, and Dane counties. Wisconsin Public Service had over 22-hundred customers without power overnight, mostly in the Green Bay and Chilton areas. Madison set new records for the date yesterday for both rain and snow, which should tell you how slippery the roads are. State transportation officials said large trucks and commercial vehicles had unsafe travel conditions during the night due to the strong winds. Wisconsin has had two storm-related deaths, both in a Rock County crash west of Janesville on Wednesday night soon after the storm began. U-W Madison postponed its final exams yesterday, but they’re on for today and tomorrow. Most K-to-12 schools in Wisconsin also closed Thursday.Today, clearing skies are forecast statewide, with areas of blowing snow in the morning. Highs will be in the 20’s before the mercury falls into the single-digits above zero tonight.
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