COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Even as South Carolina began slowly thawing out from the ice storm that blanketed the state the past several days, hundreds of thousands of customers were still without power.

Officials said more out-of-state help was on the way.

Gov. Mark Sanford on Tuesday declared a state of emergency in South Carolina, where slick and icy roads meant continued dangerous driving conditions and more than 250,000 customers remained without power.

Sanford said the ice storm had surpassed the ability of local governments to respond. His declaration means utility trucks from other states can travel in South Carolina without having to stop at weigh stations.

That was good news for South Carolina Electric & Gas officials, who said they have called in workers from North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama.

Spokeswoman Christy Farrell said more than 100,000 people were without power Tuesday from St. George to Aiken to Columbia - where most of the outages occurred.

"The progress has been slow because we are repairing the same lines three or four times," she said. "We get one section clear, and a tree falls not far from there on another section. The good news is we have more than 200 linemen coming from out of state to assist in power restoration."

But restoring power will not happen quickly, Farrell said.

"We can't estimate any length of time before all power is restored," she said. "It will be an extensive period of time."

The threat of strong winds was expected to bring additional outages as ice-laden limbs fall onto power lines, Farrell said. "Our primary focus is to restore power as quickly as we can but as safely as we can," she said.

Winds were predicted to reach 10 to 15 miles per hour in most parts of the state Wednesday.

"If the wind starts blowing that could cause them (trees) to snap and come back across the lines," said Eddie Richardson, spokesman for Mid-Electric Cooperative, which had 2,800 Midlands customers without power as of Tuesday afternoon.

The ice storm is likely the worst the state has seen since December 2002, when roughly 300,000 customers in the Upstate were left without power, said Jeff Linton, meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

But some in the Midlands area said the damage was comparable to when Hurricane Hugo hit in 1989.

"Hurricane Hugo would be the only thing approaching this storm in terms of power outages," Columbia Mayor Bob Coble said. "We need to plan for days, not hours, and plan accordingly. ... We want to make sure people realize this is a very serious problem and we need to be aware."

All the ice forced heavy tree limbs onto frozen power lines, sending residents across the state in search of warmth at hotels or makeshift shelters.

Tuesday afternoon sunshine was a welcome sight for Blanche Bajer of Columbia whose power had been off since Monday. "The sun!" Bajer gasped, her hands clasped over her lips. "Oh, that's the most beautiful thing."

Bajer, 70, said she slept Monday night fully clothed, wearing a furry black cap and under piles of afghans knitted by her daughter. On Tuesday, she double-knitted a rabbit-fur scarf around her neck, wore layers of sweaters and sweat shirts, and rarely left a chair beside her gas fireplace. She had no plans to search for shelter Tuesday night.

"I thought about getting a motel, but I've got a dog and a cat," she said. "So we'll just wait it out and see what happens."

In Gaffney, Alice Parker said this year's ice beats last year's storm when she was in the dark for two to three days. Parker had power Tuesday and stayed inside to avoid slippery sidewalks.

"Hadn't even been to the mailbox," said Parker, 52. "I don't want to break anything."

Slippery roads caused several collisions.

The Highway Patrol had responded to more than 2,500 accidents by Tuesday morning, mostly in the Upstate and in the Midlands. Six people died in weather-related traffic accidents, the Highway Patrol said.