Operations were returning to normal Tuesday at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport following a day on which travelers experienced lengthy delays due to high winds. A handful of passengers didn't get out at all.
On Monday, 79 flights were canceled and 472 were delayed at the state's largest airport, which was forced to limit arrivals and departures to a single runway that is pressed into service only during inclement weather.
By 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, with all runways open, only 10 flights at MSP had been scrubbed and 11 delayed, according to FlightAware.com.
"We spent most of the day [Monday] catching up," said airport spokesman Patrick Hogan. By Tuesday, he said, "We are well on our way to recovery."
Motorists were also seeing slight improvements on the roads across the region. By late Monday, the Minnesota Department of Transportation lifted no-travel advisories that had been in place in the Red River Valley and across the northern third of the state. But the transportation agency warned drivers to be ready to encounter slick spots as roads on Tuesday remained snow- and ice-covered in northwestern Minnesota and partly covered across the western portion of the state.
Travel remained difficult in North Dakota, which continues to dig out after more than a foot of snow fell in some places and blizzard conditions forced the shutdown of major highways.
Late Monday night, authorities opened I-94 between Jamestown and Fargo and on Tuesday opened the segment between Jamestown and Dickinson. Travel was still treacherous, however, as blowing snow limited visibility, the state's Department of Transportation said.
In South Dakota, Interstate 90 was back open after being closed most of Monday. The state's transportation department echoed the warnings put out by its neighbor to the north, urging drivers to use caution as many roads remained ice- and snow-packed. Motorists were reminded to have a winter survival kit with them, slow down and wear their seat belts.
