February 12, 2018

London City Airport is closed today due to an unexploded World War II-era bomb being discovered nearby.

Fortune writes:

Construction workers found the bomb in King George V Dock, which is a stone’s throw away from the end of the London City Airport runway, on the River Thames. After they reported it to the Metropolitan Police in the early hours of Sunday morning, the airport was shut. It remained closed on Monday.

The police set up a 214-meter (702-foot) exclusion zone so they could deal with the bomb without endangering the public. That meant evacuating residents and setting up road cordons.

According to the Evening Standard:

London City Airport has urged passengers due to fly on Monday not to travel to the airport. The airport is likely to remain closed all day.

London City Airport posted a statement from their CEO, Robert Sinclair, regarding the closure:

“The airport remains closed this morning following the discovery of a World War Two ordnance in King George V Dock on Sunday. All flights in and out of London City on Monday are cancelled and an exclusion zone is in place in the immediate area.

All flights in and out of London City on Monday are cancelled and an exclusion zone is in place in the immediate area. I urge any passengers due to fly today not to come to the airport and to contact their airline for further information.

I recognise this is causing inconvenience for our passengers, and in particular some of our local residents. The airport is cooperating fully with the Met Police and Royal Navy and working hard to safely remove the device and resolve the situation as quickly as possible.”

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February 11, 2018

A Russian plane crashed shortly after takeoff from Moscow on Sunday and is believed to have killed all 71 people on board. This is the first commercial passenger jet crash for more than a year – 2017 was the safest year on record for air travel.

According to CNN:

All 71 people aboard a Saratov Airlines plane died when the plane crashed southeast of Moscow on Sunday, Russian state news agency Tass reported.

Those on board included 65 passengers and six crew members, the Russian news agency Interfax said.

The Antonov-148 aircraft disappeared from the radar shortly after takeoff from Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport and crashed soon afterward, Tass reported.

The plane went down in Ramenskoye District, in the Moscow region, the Russian emergency ministry told CNN.

“The snow is very dense … the Moscow region has had some of its heaviest snowfall in decades,” CNN’s Matthew Chance reported from Moscow. “It’s not clear at this stage whether weather was factor in this crash.”

The BBC reports:

The Antonov An-148 was en route to the city of Orsk in the Ural mountains.

Flight-tracking site Flightradar24 said the aircraft was descending at the rate of 1,000m (3,300ft) per minute shortly after taking off early on Sunday afternoon.

Pieces of wreckage and bodies were found spread over a large area. One of the flight recorders has been recovered, officials say.

All 65 passengers were from Orenburg, the Russian region to which the plane was flying, a spokesman or the regional governor told Interfax news agency.

This is the first commercial passenger jet crash for more than a year – 2017 was the safest year on record for air travel.

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February 9, 2018

The Eiffel Tower has been closed since Tuesday due to the heaviest snow in three decades that has covered the French capital. Several flights from Paris airports and in Amsterdam were cancelled or delayed. Hundreds of people spent the night trapped in their vehicles in Paris.

According to The Daily Mail:

Eiffel Tower is closed because the stairs are too icy as snow and freezing rain hits northern France. Authorities are telling drivers in the Paris region to stay at home as snow and freezing rain have hit a swathe of northern France.

The company that manages France’s most-visited monument said the 19th-century Eiffel Tower will be closed all day Friday and Saturday ‘to ensure the security of visitors’.

The Evening Standard reports:

Commuters faced a fourth day of travel chaos as freezing conditions caused transport to grind to a halt following heavy snowfall on Tuesday evening.

Authorities urged motorists to stay off the roads in the Île-de-France region as more snow was expected to move in throughout Friday morning.

It is anticipated that Parisians could see between 4cm and 7 cm of further snowfall.

Meteo France said that Friday’s snow will not be as heavy as Tuesday night’s flurry, but said that due to the plummeting temperatures there was danger of ice on the roads.

On Thursday evening forecasters issued an alert across Paris warning of dangerous conditions.

Railway lines were up and running again on Friday morning with the Metro and RER reported to be working as usual.

But an announcement on the RATCP said that it would update travel services as the weather changed throughout the day.

Temperatures are expected to reach lows of -3C and highs of 4C on Friday as the cold snap wears on.

The Netherlands Times reports:

Snow fall in the Netherlands is causing problems with air traffic. Schiphol lists a number of flight cancelations, and KLM announced on Thursday that the airline is canceling 26 flights scheduled for Friday. Motorists, especially in the west of the country, are warned to be careful of icy roads during morning rush hour.

The snowfall is expected to start around 10:00 a.m. in the west of the country, and then spread out through the rest of the Netherlands during the course of the day. Meteorological institute KNMI issued a code yellow weather warning.

Between 1 and 3 centimeters of snow is expected during the afternoon, and that will cause dangerous driving conditions in the west, southwest and center of the country during evening rush hour, according to Weeronline. The eastern and north eastern parts of the Netherlands will only see snow during the evening.

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February 9, 2018

Chicago is undergoing the effects of a severe winter storm, including numerous canceled and delayed flights at O’Hare and Midway airports.

According to the Chicago Tribune:

As much as 5 inches had fallen by 7 a.m., causing dozens of crashes on area expressways and canceling more than 800 flights at O’Hare and Midway airports. School officials in Chicago and across the area, faced with an early forecast of more than a foot of snow, canceled classes for the day. Hundreds of schools are closed.

A winter storm warning remains in effect until noon, nine hours earlier than when it was first issued on Thursday. The weather service said 3 to 6 inches more snow was expected through the morning.

USA Today provided updates for the situation yesterday and today:

FRIDAY’S UPDATE: Airlines were canceling flights and waiving changes fees Friday as a winter storm brought heavy snow to airports in the Midwest and Great Lakes. Nationwide, more than 1,000 flights had been canceled and another 200 delayed as of 7:20 a.m. ET, according to flight-tracking service FlightAware.

THURSDAY’S UPDATE: Flying on Friday? Brace for another round of winter-weather disruptions.

Airlines were already canceling flights for Friday ahead of a winter storm that’s forecast to dump up to a foot of snow across the Midwest, including in Chicago and its busy air-travel hubs. Most big carriers also were waiving rebooking fees for fliers ticketed through Chicago and at airports across the Great Lakes region. 

Nationwide, about 925 flights had already been canceled, flight-tracking service FlightAware showed as of 10:15 p.m. ET on Thursday. The bulk of those came at Chicago’s two major airports: O’Hare is a hub for both American and United while Midway is one of the busiest bases for Southwest. At Detroit — a hub for Delta — about 15% of Friday’s flight schedule had been preemptively canceled.

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February 7, 2018

This morning, a Southwest Airlines plane headed to Montego Bay, Jamaica skidded off the runway at Baltimore-Washington International Airport while taxiing. No injuries were reported.

The Baltimore Sun writes:

BWI Airport spokesman Jonathan Dean said that the plane’s wheels never left the taxiway. But he confirmed the plane stopped at the edge of the pavement on Taxiway P, and that airport operations employees, fire department, Maryland Transportation Authority Police and Southwest Airlines personnel “responded to the incident scene.”

No one was injured. The cause of the plane’s skid is under investigation.

The flight already had been delayed more than an hour before the incident. The plane was evacuated, and its 143 passengers and six crew members were bussed back to the airport, according to Southwest Airlines. Skid marks on the taxiway pavement could be seen in a photo [passenger Charlie] Simmons took of the plane.

The plane was towed about 12:30 p.m., and the taxiway and section of the runway were reopened afterward, with negligible effect on airport operations, Dean said.

CNBC reported:

Skids or slides off runways and taxiways are the most common type of accident in commercial air travel, according to the International Air Transport Association, which represents most of the world’s airlines. In 2016, runway and taxiway excursions accounted for about a fifth of total accidents involving commercial aircraft.

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February 6, 2018

At least two people are dead and 202 injured after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck Tuesday just off the east coast of Taiwan late Tuesday, local police said. The first through third floors of the Marshal Hotel in Hualien county caved in, causing the death of one employee. Another person died in a residential building.

CNN reports:

The quake was centered in the East China Sea about 21 kilometers north-northeast of Hualien City. Light shaking was felt in the capital of Taipei, about 120 kilometers north of Hualien City, according to reports sent to the US Geological Survey.

Three buildings have collapsed, including the Marshal Hotel in Hualien City. Jeff Lin with the Hualien Police Department described the other two structures as “city department buildings.”

About 400 rescue workers scrambled to locate people, and a crane was brought in to help, footage from CNN affiliate SET TV showed. One building apparently had collapsed onto what once was the ground floor.

The injured are mainly from the Marshal Hotel, and a few of the injured were in the city buildings. One hotel employee was rescued from the basement and three others remain missing, officials said.

At least 50 Japanese tourists were among the injured, a Hualien City police dispatcher said.

Officials had no numbers for missing people.

In addition, two bridges in the area were damaged and have been closed, Lin said.

A 5.4 aftershock hit near Hualien City shortly after the larger earthquake, according to the USGS. There have been several other strong quakes in the area in the last few days.

Cellphone video from Hualien City shows a large building leaning at a dangerous angle as sirens are heard in the background. The video shows people gathering near the building and shining flashlights on windows.

According to The Weather Channel:

The temblor knocked out power to 1,900 homes in the city, The Epoch Times reports.

Some of the highways and bridges in the area have been shut down by authorities so that inspections can be performed, AP reports.

Officials shut down the Hualien Bridge and the Su-Hua Highway was temporarily closed due to a surface uplift on the roadway, Xinhua News Agency reports.

Multiple landslides that occurred along the Su-Hua Highway also contributed to its closure, according to Taiwan News.

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Monday, January 22, 2018

Alert – Two Carnival Cruise Line Passengers Go Overboard

In the space of 48 hours, Carnival Cruise Line has had two passengers go overboard. The incidents occurred on separate ships.

According to FOX:

The accident happened aboard Carnival Elation early Friday morning, when the woman plunged “several decks below,” according to a statement that Carnival Cruise Line spokesman Vance Gulliksen gave to the Miami Herald.

The ship was on a four-day Bahamas cruise from Jacksonville that departed on Thursday; the woman has not yet been identified.

“The ship’s medical team responded immediately, but, unfortunately, she passed away,” Gulliksen said in a statement.

The Times-Picayune reported on the second incident:

Carnival is searching for a passenger who went overboard from one of its cruise ships Sunday night (Jan. 21) in the Gulf of Mexico, according to a statement from the company. The 44-year-old woman was on the Carnival Triumph, which sails from New Orleans.

The ship was on its way to Cozumel on the second day of a five-day cruise. Carnival said search-and-rescue operations are underway and the company is providing support and assistance to the passenger’s family.

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Wednesday, January 22, 2018

Alert – Travel During the U.S. Government Shutdown

The U.S government is in its third day of being shut down, but may soon reach a resolution. However, due to this shutdown, several parts of travel requiring government cooperation are being affected.

Customs & Border Protection reports that Global Entry application appointments will be suspended.

According to the Los Angeles Times, those applying for passports may face a longer waiting time:

The State Department will continue to issue passports and provide other consular services in the event of a government shutdown, the agency said Friday as lawmakers faced a deadline to pass a spending measure.

In a memo sent to department employees, William Todd, the agency’s acting director of human resources, said that consular services will be “100% operational” as long as there remains enough fee revenue available.

Passport agencies located in federal buildings affected by a lapse in funding, however, may be closed down, he wrote.

“The Department will continue as many normal operations as possible,” Todd wrote. “Operating status and available funding will need to be monitored continuously and closely, and planning for a lapse in appropriations must be continued.”

If the government shuts down, the State Department will become minimally staffed, the guidance says, and excepted employees — those who must continue working in the event of a shutdown — should cease communications with nonessential employees.

The Smithsonian will remain open today.

USA Today reports the differences in national park closures between this government shutdown and the previous one in regards to national parks:

The big difference this time around is that monuments and parts of most national parks will remain open during the shutdown.

During the last shutdown, in 2013, the Obama administration closed park entrances and put up barriers around national monuments. The policy sparked a public outrage when veterans were turned away from the World War II Memorial in Washington.

Trump and his team don’t want to repeat that fiasco. Most national parks roads and monuments and the private concessions that serve them remain open this time.

Services that require staffing and maintenance, such as campgrounds, full service restrooms, and concessions that require some park staff or assistance will not be operating, the Interior Department said.

Travel + Leisure noted that air travelers shouldn’t be too affected by the shutdown:

The good news is that Transportation Security Administration agents, border security agents, air traffic controllers and immigration enforcement officials are considered essential personnel. They will continue working through the shutdown.

The impact on air travel should be minimal. Just 13% of the Homeland Security department would be furloughed in the event of a government shutdown, the Washington Post reports.

Airports and flights should run on schedule, though there may be some delays if “non-essential” employees are furloughed in a shutdown.

Travel professionals are encouraged to keep up with the latest news about passport issues on the State Department’s website: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/ea/passport-services-government-shutdown.html

Read more in Travel Pulse and Skift.

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January 19, 2018

The government of Jamaica has declared a Limited state of Emergency for St. James Parish, where Montego Bay, a popular tourist destination, is located. Other areas of Jamaica, including Negril and Ocho Rios, are not included in the Limited State of Emergency.

ABC News reports:

Police said Friday they will take a zero tolerance approach to crime in the parish of St. James, where Montego Bay is located, and nearby communities that have seen an increase in killings that officials blame on gangs and lottery scams. Police said businesses and recreational areas are under a temporary curfew, and the state of emergency allows them to search areas without a warrant.

According to the Jamaica Observer, a limited state of emergency means “that the security forces have been given extraordinary powers and some rights have been suspended. Members of the security forces may also search places without a warrant.”

[Prime Minister Andrew] Holness said the state of emergency does not equate to the suspension of the rule of law, adding that the security forces will respect the rights of citizens and protect the dignity of all.

During the question and answer segment, the prime minister said some questions would not be answered in a bid to avoid revealing strategic plans.

However, he explained that the government factored tourism into the equation and considered the effects that the state of emergency might have on the industry. He assured that stakeholders in the tourism industry have given their support.

In a Facebook posting, the State Department encouraged travelers to Jamaica to:

• Monitor local media for updates.

• Be aware of your surroundings.

• Cooperate with any police or military personnel you may encounter.

• Do not resist a police or military inspection of your vehicle and personal belongings.

• Allow additional time for transit on the roads in St. James Parish.

The U.S. State Department has not made further recommendations, however the Canadian and British governments have warned their citizens to stay inside their Montego Bay resorts.

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January 17, 2018

All,

More than 1,000 U.S. flights have been canceled and many others delayed today, with airports in Atlanta, Houston, Boston and New Orleans tallying the most cancellations. The governors of Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama and North Carolina have declared a state of emergency for at least portions of their states. Some airlines have issued waivers, including

• • • Delta Airlines

• • United Air Lines
• • American Airlines.

According to Accuweather:

A storm will form along a new push of frigid air and deposit snow on much of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia into Wednesday evening.

“The snowfall will be parented by a storm responsible for spreading accumulating snow and slippery travel over the Midwest on Monday and the Appalachians on Tuesday,” according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski.

Enough snow will fall to coat roads and lead to airline delays in the region. Plunging temperatures in the storm’s wake will lead to icy surfaces.

According to the CNN:

A winter storm was dumping snow Wednesday morning from the Florida Panhandle to Maine as it left bone-chilling and icy conditions in the states behind it, snarled traffic across parts of the South and East, and forced thousands of airline customers to scramble.

More than 1,000 US flights have been canceled and many others delayed Wednesday, with airports in Atlanta, Houston, Boston and New Orleans tallying the most cancellations, flight tracking site Flightaware.com says.

In Houston, ice that the storm left on roads a day earlier reverberated Wednesday as dozens of semitrailers and cars were stuck on US 59/Interstate 69 for hours and the city’s schools were closed.

Houston-area officials urged people to stay off the roads. Nearly 600 crashes have been reported in Harris County since Tuesday morning, Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said.

Snowfall on Wednesday is expected to be the heaviest in North Carolina — Raleigh could get up to 6 inches — and in New England, where Boston also could see around 6 inches.

“As you go into the afternoon, evening hours, the system is pushing off the Eastern Seaboard,” CNN meteorologist Pedram Javaheri said.

But even where accumulation is lighter, it could lead to slippery travel given the recent stretch of low temperatures, the National Weather Service said on Twitter.

In Tennessee, which had the coldest pockets in the South, wind chills made the air feel as low as 10 below zero Wednesday morning. More than 45 million people are under wind chill advisories or warnings in the United States.

Forecasters said chilly air would hang around from the South to the Northeast, leaving icy roads and hazardous conditions through Thursday.

The governors of Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama and North Carolina have declared a state of emergency for at least portions of their states.

Classes were canceled at a number of universities Wednesday in the South, including Georgia Tech, the University of Georgia, the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Duke University and North Carolina State University.

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