Travelers already at their vacation destination have a lot to be thankful for as a Thanksgiving Day storm dumps snow and rain on the East Coast, creating travel problems for thousands of people still traveling.
A “dynamic mid-latitude cyclone” is producing scattered showers and thunderstorms that will spread to the East Coast on Thursday, the National Weather Service said. Moderate to heavy snow is likely to develop across parts of the inland Northeast.
Severe storms will extend along the East Coast today. Winter storm watches and warnings are in effect for parts of central New England due to the heavy snow threat.
On Thanksgiving morning, air and road travel was relatively smooth until a storm in the Rockies with heavy snow led to the deicing of departing flights in Denver and Salt Lake City. According to data from FlightAware, Denver International Airport recorded more than 700 flight delays yesterday.
Newark Liberty International Airport, a crucial hub for United Airlines, experienced a 95-minute delay yesterday due to a shortage of air traffic controllers. That postponement was lifted Thursday morning. There were more than 400 delays in Newark yesterday, and 20 as of 9 a.m. Thursday.
Chris Wilbanks, the FAA’s deputy vice president for safety and technical training, told NBC News’ Tom Costello that it will take “five to seven years” before it is fully staffed and “comfortable” with new air traffic controllers.
Major airports in Boston, Newark, Atlanta and New York’s John F. Kennedy airports are experiencing flight delays, according to FlightAware’s Misery Map.
Meanwhile, a record 71.1 million people are expected to travel by car over the Thanksgiving holiday, according to AAA, and this has already led to congested roads and congested highways.
Angel Ruiz said he was traveling for hours to get from Tulare, California, to Los Angeles International Airport, from where he would continue to Guatemala to visit family. He said his journey to the airport, which would normally take three hours, was longer than his flight.
“I’ve been on the road for maybe six hours before I got on the plane to Guatemala City,” Ruiz said. “Not a good time to travel, but I got to visit my family so I’m excited.”
Drivers should be on the lookout for rainy and at times snowy conditions heading towards the East Coast on Thursday.
Meanwhile, lake-effect snow showers will impact the Upper Great Lakes and could bring 4 to 8 inches of snowfall across the northern coastline of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, forecasters said.
More cold is coming, as southward Siberian air will bring frigid temperatures – the coldest air of the season – to parts of the country.
This cold will produce daytime highs 10 to 20 degrees below average, in the 30s and 40s, from Omaha to New York and extending south.
Lows will be below freezing overnight on the Gulf Coast. Saturday through Monday, overnight temperatures will be in the teens in Chicago, 20s in New York, St. Louis, Charleston, Nashville, Raleigh and low 30s in Atlanta.
The biggest task will likely be Sunday, when 3 million people are expected to return home through TSA.
For those traveling by road, Sunday noon to 6 p.m. and Monday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. are the worst times to drive, NBC’s Tom Costello said.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
