Dubai: Due to severe weather conditions in US, Emirates flights to and from Chicago have been cancelled.
The announcement comes at a time when, once-in-a-decade winter storm is battering the US with life-threatening temperatures, while causing mayhem for travellrs across the country at the peak of the holiday season.
The following flights have been cancelled:
- EK235 and EK236 / 22nd December
- EK235 and EK 236 / 23rd December
“Customers connecting to Chicago will not be accepted for travel at their point of origin,” the airline said on its website.
Affected customers who have booked with travel agents are advised to contact them for alternative travel arrangements or a refund. Customers who have booked directly with Emirates may contact their local office for rebooking options, or visit emirates.com/refund to request a refund.
Extreme weather condition
As of early Friday, more than 200 million people “- around 60 per cent of the nation’s population “- were under some form of winter weather warning or advisory, according to the National Weather Service. Heavy snow is set to blanket the Great Lakes region and parts of northern New York state and New England, it said.
The blast “- spanning from Washington state to Maine, across the Midwest and down to the Gulf of Mexico “- is hitting just as an estimated 112.7 million people are set to travel at least 50 miles (80 kilometers) through January 2, according to automotive group AAA. It’s also threatening power outages for large swaths of the country and even the potential disruption of liquefied natural gas exports, which have been a lifeline for Europe as it battles a historic energy crisis.
“This is not like a snow day, you know, when you’re a kid. This is serious stuff,” President Joe Biden said in a Thursday briefing, calling it “dangerous” and threatening. “If you all have travel plans, leave now. Not a joke.”
More than 3,200 flights for Friday and Saturday have been canceled around the US, according to airline tracking service FlightAware.
Lowest recorded temperature
On Friday, the high temperature in Chicago is set to be around 0F (-18C), with a wind chill of -37F, according to the National Weather Service. Rain will hit New York through the morning and early afternoon, with wind gusts as high as 46 miles (74 kilometers) per hour. Significant freezing rain is possible in the Pacific Northwest. Temperatures are set to moderate in the Northern Rockies and High Plains this weekend.
Extreme cold warnings covered western Canada, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada. Winter storm warnings spread across Ontario, Quebec and the Maritime provinces. In Toronto, the country’s most populous city, forecasters have warned of a flash freeze, high winds and up to 15 centimeters (6 inches) of snow by Saturday morning.
Thursday’s lowest recorded temperature in the 48 contiguous US states was -50F in Montana, while Canada’s coldest was about -53C (-64F) in Rabbit Kettle, Northwest Territories.
-With inputs from Bloomberg
