Funviralpark The cold weather in the Arctic is throwing a wrench into many vacation plans, with flight cancellations on the rise as people pack into airports and luggage could be delayed past Christmas.
Flight cancellations increased at all three major Bay Area airports on Friday, despite temperatures in San Jose surpassing 60 degrees.
At San Francisco International Airport, 91 flights were canceled and 193 flights were delayed. At Mineta San Jose International Airport, he had 56 cancellations, according to FlightAware, including nearly half of his scheduled flights with Alaska Airlines. Auckland International Airport has recorded 50 cancellations.
In the Pacific Northwest, Alaska Airlines and Horizon Airlines canceled all flights at Seattle-Tacoma Airport by noon after conditions forced authorities to close runways.
“It was a nightmare,” said KD Barnaby, who flew from Seattle to San Jose earlier this week to visit his grandchildren. Then her husband contracted her COVID-19, upending plans with her family. On Friday, Barnaby was in a rush to catch her flight back to Seattle to take care of her ailing husband. She said, “Yesterday I tried to get home, but I couldn’t catch the Alaska flight, so I tried going southwest. And finally, delays, delays, and cancellations.”
Domestically, the Arctic cold front has devastated air travel, with nearly 16,000 flights canceled Thursday through Saturday.
But even for those staying in California, the winter storm could cause serious delays at UPS and FedEx hubs, upending holiday gifts meant for families across the Bay Area by Christmas.
“All FedEx Express locations have been impacted by severe winter weather, and we anticipate delays in deliveries across the United States for packages committed to delivery by Monday, December 26,” the shipping company said. person said on Friday.
FedEx said it has completely suspended services in parts of Chicago, Cincinnati, Buffalo, Denver and Louisville. Refunds on guaranteed delivery dates by the primary shipper are also void according to the terms and conditions. Same as the US Postal Service Express Mail Guarantee.
VK Chopra, who runs the UPS Store in Auckland, said his operations are running on schedule despite holiday disruptions elsewhere. “We don’t have customers screaming and moaning and falling over boxes,” Chopra says.
Outside California, tens of millions of Americans endured bone-chilling temperatures, blizzards, power outages and the cancellation of holiday gatherings due to Friday’s winter storm. Forecasters said its range was unprecedented.
According to PowerOutage, a website that tracks utility reports, the blackout has left about 1.4 million homes and businesses in darkness. Power companies throughout Nashville, Memphis and the Tennessee Valley said they are implementing rolling blackouts on Friday to conserve power.
At least five people have died in storm-related car accidents in Ohio, Missouri and Kansas.
The weather here was mild. But the Spare-the-Air alert remained in place until Christmas, and by late Friday morning, the region’s Air Quality Index reading was above 100, according to real-time air quality monitoring service Purple Air. Exceeded. Values between 101 and 150 mean the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups, and values above 151 mean unhealthy for everyone.
The Weather Service reported light showers in parts of the North Bay near Cloverdale Thursday night, but not enough to measure. Temperatures in the South Bay rose to the 60s Friday However, areas of Alameda and Contra Costa Counties could see warmer temperatures through Saturday.
The holiday weekend looks ideal, with highs in the 60s and good sunshine, but the weather service says the storm is moving from the Pacific Northwest toward the Bay Area. Forecasters expect at least an inch or two of rain across the region and as much as four inches in the coastal mountains when the system arrives late Monday or Tuesday.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
