BOSTON -- A powerful Nor'easter brought blizzard-like conditions and dumped more than 1 foot of snow in many Massachusetts cities and towns on Sunday.

The storm created treacherous driving conditions and led to the cancellation of hundreds of flights at airports across New England. The snow started falling at about 2 a.m. and was expected to last into the evening.

NewsCenter 5's Meteorologist Dick Albert said that by 2 p.m., more than 13 inches of snow fell in western Massachusetts, and 8 inches of snow fell in Boston. High tide came in at 11 a.m. with powerful storm surges and wind gusts, but there were few reports of flooded roads.

"We've got a pretty good tide coming right now. The tide is at noon today. We are probably going to have some flooding here," Nantucket Harbormaster Dave Fronzuto said. "The gust of 65 mph at the height of the tide concerns me, but everything seems to be OK."

Officials urged motorists to stay off the roads so that snowplows could clear the snow and ice.

"The message that we'd like to get out now is that we have 3,600 plows on the roads, so if people can stay off the roads to let the plow drivers to their work, that would be best," Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey said.

Near whiteout conditions made travel difficult on some area roads.

"It's slow going, and the visibility is limited because of the blowing snow. Fortunately, we don't have the commuter traffic," Massachusetts State Police Department Lt. Eric Anderson. "If you don't have to go out, please don't."

The speed limit on the Massachusetts Turnpike was reduced to 40 mph, but several spinouts were reported.

"We are keeping on top of the snow, and we will throughout the day so that everything is ready for the (Monday) morning commute, but we are asking people to stay off the roads," Massachusetts Highway Department spokeswoman Luisa Paiewonsky said.

Several cities and towns have also declared snow emergencies with parking restrictions. Boston Mayor Tom Menino canceled public schools for Monday and reminded residents that a parking ban remained in effect. Officials gave out more than 4,000 tickets and towed 590 cars that were parked illegally, Menino said.

"The streets are in pretty good shape. Because of the (parking) ban, there were no cars on the road," Menino said. "It's given the plows the opportunity to push the snow right to the curb."

Menino said that the city deployed about 600 pieces of snow removal equipment to help clear the streets of Boston.

Hundreds of flights were canceled at Boston's Logan International Airport, and officials urged travelers to check the status of their flights before heading to Logan.

"The airport is open. Ninety percent of our flights have been canceled," Massport spokesman Richard Walsh said. "We have 50 pieces of equipment to keep those runways clear of snow for as long as we can."

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority also reported several delays.

Watch NewsCenter 5 for complete, live coverage of the storm.