East Coast blizzard causing cancellations at Mpls.-St. Paul airport

The snowstorm that has closed airports up and down the East Coast has caused backups at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, as well.

Airport spokesman Patrick Hogan said that planes aren't taking off for areas hit hardest by the weekend storm.

"All the flights to New York and most of those to New Jersey have been cancelled for most of the day today," Hogan said. "We might see some getting out at some point this afternoon, but most of the people trying to make it to that area of the East Coast are not going to be able to make it out.

"We've also seen some cancellations to Boston and Philadelphia, so anybody traveling to the East Coast today needs to check in with their airline before they come to the airport," he said.

The storm dropped as much as 30 inches of snow in some places, and has closed Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark airports. JFK is expected to reopen at about 6 p.m. today.

Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey and Massachusetts have also declared statewide emergencies in the wake of the storm