You've heard all of the chatter the past few days. Dangerously cold wind chills, blowing and drifting snow and icy roads — well, it's finally here. An arctic cold front meteorologists have been projecting since last week has made its way into the region. Wind chills of 50 below are possible until Thursday morning. A wind chill warning will remain in effect for every county in Wisconsin until noon Thursday, though the worst of the cold is expected Wednesday when temperatures could drop to 20 below and wind chills could fall anywhere between 35 and 55 below zero. The Weather Service warns those who will be outdoors that frostbite could be an issue. "A Wind Chill Warning means the combination of very cold air and the wind will create dangerously low wind chill values," the weather service said. "Frostbite can occur quickly and even hypothermia or death if precautions are not taken." Gov. Tony Evers declared a state of emergency Tuesday night and directed state government offices to close Wednesday. Around noon Tuesday a slew of school districts and local colleges and universities started announcing cancellations for Tuesday night and Wednesday. Green Bay, Appleton, Oshkosh, Fond du Lac, Manitowoc and Sheboygan districts closed for the day, as well as Fox Valley Technical College and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and UW-Green Bay campuses. Countless other businesses, schools and institutions across the state announced Wednesday closures. Call or check online before you go anywhere — your destination might be closed. County and city workers continue to clean up roads and highways after Monday's winter storm dropped between 8 and 12 inches of snow in some areas. But with the arctic air moving into the area, icy and snowy stretches on roads remained through Tuesday. Crews could not fully clean the roads Tuesday, authorities said. It's because road salt becomes much less effective below 15 degrees, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Plus, previously dropped salt can leave a residue, and dry, fluffy, drifting snow can stick to it. That makes roads even more slippery. Snow was blowing off Lake Butte des Morts onto the Interstate 41 bridge Tuesday afternoon, causing near-white-out conditions, the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office said. Two southbound lanes were closed around 3:30 and traffic appeared to crawl along the bridge, the DOT reports. Below is a list of noteworthy snow totals from winter storm, according to the National Weather Service:<doc-sep>County executives declare weather emergencies for Wednesday, Thursday Milwaukee County circuit courts, government will be closed Share Shares Copy Link Copy Hide Transcript Show Transcript WEBVTT NON-ESSENTIAL PROGRAMS WILL BE CLOSED. 12 NEWS KENT WAINSCOTT SHOWS US THE CITY’S PLAN TO KEEP PEOPLE SAFE. >> THE WEATHER FORECAST FOR TOMORROW IN PARTICULAR, AND PROBABLY FOR THURSDAY, IS VERY, VERY SERIOUS. >> MAYOR TOM BARRETT IS URGING RESIDENTS TO STAY OUT OF THE COLD WEDNESDAY. DRESS APPROPRIATELY IF YOU HAVE TO BE OUTSIDE, AND CHECK ON YOUR NEIGHBORS. HE CANCELLED ALL NON-ESSENTIAL CITY PROGRAMS TO KEEP EMPLOYEES SAFE. >> PROPERTY INSPECTIONS, I DON’T WANT TO SEE ANY PROPERTY INSPECTIONS. I DON’T WANT TO SEE THE DEPT OF PUBLIC WORKS DOING THOSE THINGS. SOME OF THE HOME VISITS, TOMORROW IS NOT THE DAY FOR HOME VISITS FROM THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT, BECAUSE OF THE SAFETY CONCERNS. >> >> BUT SOME PEOPLE DO HAVE TO BE OUT IN IT. JOEY KNIGHT HAD TO CLEAR SNOW AT THE CITY’S WATER INTAKE FACILITY. >> ESPECIALLY WHEN THE WEATHER DROPS LIKE THIS, IT BECOMES ICE. IF YOU DON’T GET ON IT QUICK ENOUGH, BANGING INTO THINGS, IT BECOMES A REAL HEADACHE. >> YOU BROKE A SHOVEL. >> YEAH. >> AND SOME, LIKE COUNTY BUS DRIVER JACOB RAPP, ARE TAKING IT UPON THEMSELVES TO HELP OTHERS. >> LOTS OF PEOPLE ARE HOMELESS. THEY LIKE TO RIDE AROUND ON THE BUS. KEEPS THEM A LITTLE WARM. AND YOU HELP THEM OUT. I HELP THEM OUT BY HANDING OUT HAND WARMERS. >> BUT THERE’S ANOTHER CONCERN FOR THE CITY. TIES INTO THE SAFETY OF RESIDENTS AND EMPLOYEES, ONE THAT’S BELOW THE CITY STREETS. >> WATER MAIN BREAKS COULD BE A MAJOR PROBLEM. >> THE YOU HAVE CONCERNS HAVE THE INFRASTRUCTURE WILL HOLD UP DURING THIS COLD? >> I THINK ANYBODY WHO’S DEALING WITH PUBLIC WORKS HAS TO BE CONCERNED WHEN YOU SEE WHAT THE TEMPERATURES ARE GOING TO BE. >> AND THE MAYOR’S SIMPLE ADVICE TO ANYONE WHO CAN FOLLOW IT. >> STAY INSIDE. PATRICK: THE CITY IS ALSO OPENING WARMING SHOULDERS, LIKE THE ONE YOU ARE AT RIGHT NOW. >> IT IS TOO COLD TO BE OUTSIDE. THAT’S WHY I’M INSIDE. THE CITY WANTS EVERYONE INSIDE, THE MEAL SITE HERE AT SAINT BEN’S DOWNTOWN IS OPENING FOR EXTENDED HOURS. THERE ARE SEVEN SHELTERS ACROSS THE CITY. THEY HAVE OPENED UP 300 BEDS TO GET AS MANY PEOPLE OUT OF THE COLD ON THESE BRUTALLY COLD NIGHTS. YOU CAN CHECK OUT THE LOCATIONS ON OUR WEBSITE, OR YOU CAN DIAL 2-1-1 IF YOU ARE IN NEED O GET LOCAL BREAKING NEWS ALERTS The latest breaking updates, delivered straight to your email inbox. 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Advertisement Counties declare weather emergencies because of winter storm Share Shares Copy Link Copy Milwaukee County is under a snow emergency ahead of a winter storm, County Executive Chris Abele announced Sunday.Milwaukee County circuit courts and Milwaukee County government will be closed Monday for, "the safety of employees and the public," according to a news release. All non-essential personnel should not report to work January 28, according to Abele. Milwaukee County Department of Transportation and the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office will operate at full capacity during the storm. Residents are urged to stay off the roads, according to the release.Milwaukee County Transit Services (MCTS) buses are expected to run as scheduled, though county officials warn there could be weather-related delays depending on road conditions. Milwaukee County plans to resume normal operations Tuesday, January 29 at 8 a.m., according to Abele. Racine County:Racine County Executive Jonathan Delagrave issued a declaration of emergency due to extreme weather conditions forecasted this week for Racine County, including a Winter Storm Warning beginning Sunday evening, January 27, 2019. Washington County:Washington County operations will be closed Monday. All non-essential employees are excused from work and are asked to remain at home in order to stay safe during this inclement weather period. This includes all Justice Center employees as well. Some employees are required to report to work, or to remain at work, during an emergency even when the rest of the county employees have been excused from work in situations such as this. These are the employees who are engaged in emergency, weather-related, or essential operations. If you are in one of these positions, you will be expected to report to work as scheduled. If you are unsure if you are in one of these positions, please contact your supervisor. Waukesha County:Waukesha County Executive Paul Farrow has declared a Winter Weather Emergency from 6 p.m. Sunday, January 27 until 6 p.m. Monday. All non-essential Waukesha County offices will be closed all day Monday, January 28. As part of this closure, the Waukesha County Courthouse will be closed and all court matters will be rescheduled. County offices will reopen at 8 a.m. Tuesday.