MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - States in the northern plains are largely shutting down ahead of a massive winter storm that could dump up to 2 feet of snow in some areas, accompanied by strong winds and dangerously cold temperatures.

Many schools throughout the Dakotas, Minnesota and Wisconsin were called off for Wednesday, ahead of the storm. Offices closed, and so did the Minnesota Legislature, which won’t reconvene until Monday. Emergency management leaders warned people to stay off the roads or face potential “whiteout” conditions due to the snow and fierce winds.

The storm will make its way toward the East Coast later in the week, with the Times News area under a winter weather advisory until 1 a.m. Thursday. The forecast calls for a mix of precipitation, with ice accumulations up to a tenth of an inch for the Carbon County area.

Places that don’t get snow may get dangerous amounts of ice. Forecasters expect up to a half-inch of ice in some areas of southern Michigan, northern Illinois and some eastern states.

The snowfall could be historic, even in a region accustomed to heavy snow. As much as 25 inches may pile up, with the heaviest amounts falling across east-central Minnesota and west-central Wisconsin, the National Weather Service said. Wind gusts could reach 50 mph and wind chills are expected to hit minus 50 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 46 degrees Celsius) in some parts of the Dakotas and Minnesota.

The Minneapolis-St. Paul area could see 2 feet of snow or more for the first time in over 30 years.

Some families scrambled Tuesday to get shopping done before the weather closed in. At a Costco in the Minneapolis suburb of St. Louis Park, Molly Schirmer stocked up on heat-and-serve dinners and Mexican Coca-Colas, knowing that she and her two teenagers might get stuck at home.

“The schools are already preparing to go online, so the kids will probably be home doing online school,” Schirmer said of her 13- and 15-year-olds.

At another Costco in suburban Eagan, Larry and Sue Lick bought toilet paper, kitchen essentials and coffee ahead of the storm. They also rescheduled medical appointments and a family gathering, just to stay off the roads.

“It’s not so much our driving, but you’ve got to worry about everybody else driving, with so many accidents caused by people that don’t know the winter driving,” said Larry Lick, 77.

The weather service said the blizzard will actually involve two rounds. For the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, the first blast arrives Wednesday afternoon with up to 7 inches of snow. Round 2 starting later Wednesday and extending into Thursday is the real whopper, “with an additional 10 to 20 inches expected.”

Weather service meteorologist Frank Pereira said the system was expected to affect about 43 million Americans.

Temperatures could plunge to minus 15 to minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit Thursday and to minus 25 degrees Fahrenheit Friday in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Wind chills may fall to minus 50 degrees Fahrenheit, said Nathan Rick, a meteorologist in Grand Forks.

Wind gusts of 35 mph will be common in western and central Minnesota, with some reaching 50 mph. That will result in “significant blowing and drifting snow with whiteout conditions in open areas,” the weather service said.

According to the weather service, the biggest snow event on record in the Twin Cities was 28.4 inches from Oct. 31 through Nov. 3, 1991 - known as the Halloween Blizzard. The second-largest was 21.1 inches of snow from Nov. 29 through Dec. 1, 1985. The Twin Cities got 20 inches of snow on Jan. 22 and Jan. 23, 1982.