Former Minn. Rep. Winkler Talks Deadly Brussels Attacks

(CBS) -- Explosions rocked the main airport terminal and a subway station in Brussels, Belgium on Tuesday, a day after authorities said a suspect in the Nov. 13, 2015 Paris terror attacks -- possibly the bomb-maker -- was likely loose in the city.

At least 36 people were believed to have been killed in what Belgian federal prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw said were "terrorist attacks" in the city which has remained on high alert since the Paris carnage.

WCCO's Steve Simpson interviewed former Minnesota state representative Ryan Winkler, who is living in Brussels and has personal information on the attacks.

Winkler stepped down in July of 2015 because his wife had taken a job in Brussels. And they both were very recently at the airport where the first explosion took place.

"My wife is in Copenhagen and flew out of the airport yesterday," he said. "And I arrived back in Brussels from Minnesota on Sunday morning, so both yesterday and the day before, we came through the airport at about the same time of day as the explosion that happened today, so that's very close."

The following explosion at the subway stop happened shortly after.

"That also is a place we regularly go through between our home and the center of the city," he said. "It's all happening quite close to us and destroying areas that are a part of our daily lives."

Winkler says the US Embassy is advising everyone to stay put.

"Fortunately for me, my kids were on school break this week, so that's part of the reason we were home and we're all here together and we're not spread around all over the place," Winkler said.

Listen to the full interview below.
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NYPD increasing police presence after Brussels explosions

NEW YORK (AP/WCCO) — Security was stepped up throughout New York City on Tuesday after explosions at the airport and subway system in the Belgian capital of Brussels killed at least two dozen people.

"The New York City Police Department is closely monitoring the situation in Belgium and is in close contact with our international partners and with the FBI," the NYPD said in a statement.

The agency said there was "no known indication that the attack has any nexus to New York City," but that it was deploying additional counterterrorism units to crowded areas and transit locations across the city "out of an abundance of caution." The Port Authority Police Department also increased security at the area's three major airports: John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty. It also employed high visibility anti-terrorist patrols throughout the PATH system and the World Trade Center site.

Delta Airlines also issued a statement regarding the attacks Tuesday morning.

They said Delta flight DL80, a Boeing 767 with 151 passengers and 11 crew, that was flying from Atlanta to Brussels landed safely at the airport and all customers had deplaned.

"Delta will be actively working with customers with flights booked to, from or through Brussels to reaccommodate their travel plans," Delta officials said in the statement. "Delta has issued a travel waiver to assist impacted customers in rescheduling flights as necessary."

Another Delta flight traveling to Brussels from New York, flight DL42, was rerouted to Amsterdam.

At least 36 people were reported dead and dozens more were injured Tuesday morning in the Brussels explosions that prompted a lockdown of the Belgian capital and heightened security across Europe. Belgium raised its terror alert to the highest level, diverting planes and trains.

The Brussels prosecutor's office called the explosions terror attacks. They came just days after the main suspect in the November attacks in Paris was arrested in Brussels. After his arrest, Salah Abdeslam told authorities he had created a new network and was planning new attacks.

But, there was no immediate claim of responsibility for Tuesday's attacks and no immediate evidence linking Abdeslam.

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