MADISON, Wis. -- State and county officials Thursday morning defended their handling of the massive traffic backup on Interstate 39-90 that left more than 2,000 motorists stranded overnight.

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Although frustration remains high for many who were stranded in the gridlock for hours Wednesday, State Patrol Superintendent David Collins called the effort a "success," because throughout it all, there were no major traffic crashes, injuries or major vehicle damage.

Wednesday's massive snowstorm and traffic backup on I-90 left thousands of motorists stranded for as long as 12 hours, some without food, water or gasoline. (For more information, read related story)

State and county officials who supervised the traffic jam, which stretched for 17 miles at one point, said they "sympathize" with the stranded motorists but contended that they did a good job under historic weather conditions and kept everyone safe.

"(Motorists) were stopped. They waited patiently; we got help to them. We checked them, and we eventually got them on their way. And in my book, in the world of public safety, that's a success," Collins said at a news conference at the Wisconsin Emergency Operations Center on Thursday morning.

Besides the State Patrol, officials with the Wisconsin National Guard, Emergency Operations Management and Rock and Dane county sheriff's departments attended the news conference. All congratulated their emergency crews and said coordination and technology were instrumental in "getting the problem solved as quickly and as efficiently as possible," WISC-TV reported.

"I was very proud of their efforts. I stand by those men and women -- they delivered," said Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney of all the crews in the field.

Officials on Thursday estimated that 2,053 vehicles were stranded Wednesday. Authorities said that there were 653 passenger vehicles and 689 semitrailers heading westbound just south of Janesville up to Edgerton. In the eastbound lanes, authorities said that 134 passenger vehicles and 567 semitrailers were stranded.

The incident began when some tractor-trailers lost traction and got stuck on a small hill on I-90 north during Wednesday's storm. State emergency management personnel said the problem developed Wednesday afternoon and traffic was backed up into Rock County. Authorities said their efforts were slow going because stuck semitrailers created a bottleneck that was difficult to clear as more traffic became backed up.

Gov. Jim Doyle called a state of emergency to have National Guard troops help motorists late Wednesday night. About 70 National Guard troops on snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles checked on the stranded motorists early Thursday morning. They delivered fuel, food, water and blankets to some of those stuck. The Guard soldiers made three separate trips on four-wheel drive vehicles to run motorists 7,000 bottles of water and more than 400 ready-to-eat meals, officials said.

The Dane and Rock county sheriff's departments activated as many deputies as possible to help. State Department of Natural Resources workers were also out on snowmobiles, WISC-TV reported.

However, many motorists complained that they didn't receive offers of help from authorities for hours after they became stuck. Some also complained that they received little official information about what was going on. But Collins said motorists should be happy that things turned out the way they did.

"There were no reports of crashes in these backups and delays, and no reports of any injuries or emergencies to any level that required any level of hospitalization," Collins said.

But the head of the State Patrol said that he sees room for improvement in the agency's response to the backup. Collins said that he will look for ways to improve how authorities communicated the situation to the public. He also said that the State Patrol didn't learn about the backup until about 4 p.m. Wednesday. Some motorists have said they were stuck as long as three hours earlier.

The governor's office started mobilizing the Wisconsin National Guard sometime after 7 p.m., and Doyle officially declared a state of emergency at 10:15 p.m. Wednesday. National Guard troops and others used four-wheel drive vehicles to deliver food, water and gas.

Some motorists said they want to know why the interstate wasn't closed and traffic sent to an alternate route.

But Collins and others also said it was the "right decision" not to close the interstate ramps. Officials said that would have drawn critical resources away from the backup scene and put people onto state highways that were snow-covered and dangerous.

"The state highways throughout southern Wisconsin from 6 p.m. (Wednesday) until early this morning were snow-covered, hazardous and dangerous. There was not a safe route that I felt we could bring any of this traffic off to," Collins said. "And each one of us agreed that getting off that major highway would put people in jeopardy."

Hundreds of stranded motorists Wednesday night on Interstate 39-90 in Rock and Dane counties were sleeping or trying to keep warm. Others were able to make it to area hotels where accommodations had been set up provide shelter for some of the victims, WISC-TV reported.

The governor on Thursday called for a review of the emergency response to the stranded motorists. Doyle said the review should address coordination and communication among multiple agencies and jurisdictions in responding to the situation; accurate and timely assessment of the severity of the situation; and effective and timely communication of the situation to the public.

Doyle also thanked all the emergency personnel, first responders, the State Patrol and members of the National Guard who worked to help motorists.