Power outage at Atlanta airport grounds flights

By Angelica Haggert

Hundreds of flights were grounded and thousands of passengers were stuck in limbo on one of the busiest travel weeks of the year when the power went out at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Shortly after 1 p.m. on Dec. 17, the entire airport lost power. By 4 p.m. the Federal Aviation Administration had issued a ground stop for flights headed to Atlanta. This means planes remained on the runways at their departing cities. Many flights were also diverted or cancelled, with Delta airlines cancelling more than 1,000 flights on Dec. 17 and 300 flights on Dec. 18.

Power was restored at 12 a.m. Dec. 18, after the almost 11 hour outage.

“The issue may have involved a fire which caused extensive damage in an underground electrical facility,” said representatives from Georgia Power, the electricity company for the airport.

Atlanta Airport will accommodate passengers with interrupted flights and allow them to rebook with no penalty.

“Passengers with a ticket dated 12/17 will need to reprint [the] ticket before being processed through checkpoints,” the airport said in a release.

The City of Atlanta opened a convention centre to provide overnight sleep accommodations.

“The City of Atlanta has mobilized the Georgia International Convention Center and will provide shuttle services for anyone who needs a place to stay for the night,” Atlanta Airport tweeted.

Local restaurant Chik-Fil-A also opened to provide food to stranded passengers both at the International Convention Center and at the airport.

Passengers are advised to check with their airlines directly for rescheduled flights.