Chicago: Flights halt, plane skids off runway due to winter storm

Federal Aviation Administration halted all the flights in and out of Chicago’s O’Hare airport for hours on Friday night due to sprawling winter storm. Though the administration lifted the stop at 9:45 pm, it was too late as many flights had already been cancelled. 

Plane skid off

Earlier on Friday, a plane skid off an icy taxiway at Kansas City International Airport. The Delta Airlines flight was scheduled to fly to Detroit when it skid off the runway, said Delta spokeswoman Martha Witt. There were no reports of injuries aboard the airbus A319 which was carrying 123 passengers along with six crew members. 

Read: Chicago Cubs Keeping Options Open With Season On The Horizon

Read: Canada Declares Emergency Over Snowstorm

The airport resumed its operations in the noon but numerous flights were already cancelled in the morning. The Chicago Dept of Aviation at 9:00 pm reported the cancellation of nearly 690 flights at O’Hare and 169 at Midway Airport. The other airport affected by the storm was the Lambert International Airport in St. Louise, Missouri which reported the cancellation of more than 130 flights till Friday noon. Meanwhile, American Airlines suspended all flights to Missouri’s Columbia Region Airport until Saturday noon.  

Read: Police: 2 Young Brothers Among 5 Shot In Chicago Barbershop

Read: US To Screen People At Airports After Mystery Coronavirus Claims Another Life

Meanwhile, the capital of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador declared a rare state of emergency on January 17 as blizzard conditions descended on the city and residents prepared for an intense storm expected to last into Saturday. Officials ordered businesses to closed and vehicles to remain off the roads. The nearby towns of Mount Pearl, Paradise, Torbay and Portugal Cove-St. Philip's followed suit shortly afterwards.

Environment Canada issued blizzard and wind warnings for much of Newfoundland and said strong winds and blowing snow might cause whiteout conditions until Saturday in some places. Footage filmed by St John's resident, Timothy Sacrey, 40, outside his home on Friday evening shows swirling snow and snowdrifts. "We are used to having tough winters, it's a rugged place, next to the ocean, with a lot of precipitation but this is ridiculous," Sacrey said. "There are people who have lived here their whole lives who are really frightened. It's the first time I have ever heard people being afraid of a storm," he said. Sacrey also told AP that power has been lost on the other side of his road.