Hundreds of flights canceled or delayed over Hurricane Idalia

Hundreds of flights have been delayed or canceled as Hurricane Idalia wreaks havoc across the Sunshine State, causing a handful of airports to shutter Wednesday ahead of the destructive storm’s impact.

Several major airports were closed, including Tampa International Airport, St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport, Boca Raton Airport, Gainesville Regional Airport, and the Tallahassee International Airport. They may reopen Thursday depending on damage, officials said.

Over 700 flights in and out of Tampa International Airport were canceled for Tuesday and Wednesday, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.

Hurricane Idalia made landfall just before 8 a.m. near Keaton Beach in Taylor County, rushing in with 125 mph winds as a Category 3 storm before weakening to a Category 2 one an hour later.

Despite its downgrade, the National Hurricane Center still warned of ongoing “catastrophic storm surge.” Idalia’s maximum sustained winds are now 110 mph, down 15 mph from the 125 mph Category 3 gusts. 

Across all airlines over 1,300 flights into or out of the US were delayed Wednesday morning, while more than 1,600 were canceled altogether, according to Flight Aware.

The flight-tracking website showed that Southwest Airlines’ schedule was the most impacted, with over 200 cancelations and an additional 200 delays.

Other affected airlines include Delta, American Airlines and United, which each have between 70 and 160 cancelations and between 120 and 200 delays.

Several major airlines, including Southwest, Delta and United, have urged travelers moving within Indalia’s path to be wary of schedule changes and cancelations.

All Florida airports are urging travelers to check the status of their flights with their airline provider before they attempt to trek through Idalia to the airport.

Other airports that have remained open, including the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport, the Jacksonville International Airport, Fort Meyers International Airport and the Orlando International Airport. However, they have all warned that flight disruptions and delays are expected throughout the day.

Florida’s travel troubles come as Idalia pummels Florida with damaging winds, heavy rains and an ongoing threat of storm surges up to 16 feet in places.

Nearly 270,000 Floridians were without power Wednesday as the storm closed in on the state, PowerOutage.us shows. 

President Joe Biden is expected to speak about the hurricane’s impact from the White House Wednesday afternoon.