Jodi Walker-Robinson and her daughter Tori try to fight off fat, wet snowflakes with a coat as they cross Maple Street on Wednesday in River Falls. Credit: TNS

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Members of the Wisconsin National Guard were activated Wednesday by Gov. Scott Walker ahead of a winter storm expected to make travel dangerous, create blizzard conditions and dump up to a foot of snow on parts of the state.

Walker declared a state of emergency, ordering Guard members to assist local authorities and directing all state agencies to assist in any response or recovery efforts.

The entire midsection of the state is under a winter storm warning issued by the National Weather Service in Sullivan.

The storm will result in dangerous travel conditions and reduce visibility to below a quarter-mile at times, according to the weather service.

Motorists should keep a flashlight, food and water in their vehicles and heavy, wet snow and high winds will likely cause power outages, the weather service said.

In the Fox Valley and lakeshore areas, the winter storm warning was to be upgraded to a blizzard warning from 1 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, with wind gusts from 35 mph to 45 mph expected to create whiteout conditions, according to the weather service.

The heaviest snow was expected overnight Wednesday into Thursday morning, the weather service said.

Slippery roads are also expected across the northern section of southern Wisconsin from Grant to Washington counties, where a winter weather advisory is in effect until 1 p.m. Thursday. The forecast calls for 3 to 5 inches of snow and wind gusts up to 35 mph.

About 110 Guard members will be stationed at armories in the path of the storm, according to a news release from the Wisconsin Army and Air National Guard.

The Guard members will be prepared for emergency response duties that include rendering aid to stranded motorists and performing welfare checks in affected areas, providing 24-hour coverage in 12-hour shifts, according to the release.

Milwaukee County and the remainder of southern Wisconsin can expect rain, sleet, snow and northeasterly wind gusts as high as 35 mph during the storm, but snow and sleet accumulations of less than 11/2 inches are expected, according to the weather service.

A high temperature near 37 degrees is expected in Milwaukee on Thursday.