Hurricane Helene continues to wreak havoc over large swaths of the southern United States, prompting flight cancellations to and from Vancouver.
The cyclone weakened into a tropical storm over Georgia on Friday, Sept. 27 after making landfall overnight in northwestern Florida as a Category 4 storm.
Helene has claimed at least 22 lives in Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. Dozens of people are still trapped in storm-damaged homes.
The storm also battered Cancun in Mexico before heading up the coast, leaving travellers stranded at the airport.
In addition to Helene, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) has warnings for several other storms, including tropical storm Joyce and Hurricane Issac.
NHC has lifted its warning for tropical storm John, which claimed eight lives in southern Mexico, and five days of heavy rains have generated severe flooding and mudslides in the Pacific coast resort of Acapulco.
Are flights from Vancouver cancelled?
At Orlando International Airport, Florida’s busiest, there had been 77 flight cancellations in the past 24 hours, as of Friday morning, according to FlightAware.
Airports in Atlanta and Charlotte, North Carolina, remained open Friday morning but were reporting large numbers of cancellations and heavy delays. By 8 a.m., nearly 300 flights to or from Charlotte, a major hub for American Airlines, had been canceled. Nearly 400 more, to or from Charlotte, were delayed, according to FlightAware.
Florida's major airports opened Friday morning but Vancouver International Airport (YVR) shows a few cancellations on direct flights to and from Georgia's largest airport.
YVR's departures page shows one flight cancellation with WestJet from Atlanta (ATL) at 11 p.m., while its arrivals page shows two cancelled WestJet flights from Atlanta at 11:20 a.m. and 9:04 p.m.
However, travellers departing from Vancouver on connecting flights to U.S., Mexican, or Caribbean cities should check the weather at their destination and their connecting city. Additionally, they should check for delays on their connecting flight; most flights from Vancouver to Floridian airports involve one or two connections and YVR's information would not show these delays or cancellations.
WestJet's hurricane policies
WestJet has instated its tropical storm/hurricane promise for guests affected by Hurricane Helene. People visiting or returning from Atlanta, Georgia on Sept. 27 can take advantage of the airline's flexible change policies. The airline previously had the change policy for travellers headed to or from Tampa, Orlando, or Fort Myers in Florida and Cancun in Mexico on Sept. 26 or 27.
Hurricane/tropical storm travel advisories are issued based on information provided by the Canadian Hurricane Centre or the (American) National Hurricane Center.
WestJet will allow you to do one of several options if you haven't left for your trip yet:
- Cancel your reservation: Transfer the full amount paid into a Travel Bank credit valid for one year.
- Change your travel dates (subject to availability) to the same flight number, origin and destination.
- Choose an earlier date, or a date up to and including 14 days after the original departure date and WestJet will waive any difference in fare.
- Choose a date of 15 days or more after your original departure date and normal exchange and refund guidelines will apply.
- Change your destination. Pay any difference in fare. If your new itinerary costs less, WestJet will give you a Travel Bank credit for the difference.
If you're en route to your destination or already in it, WestJet will waive change and cancellation fees. However, there are a few factors to consider.
- Return early (subject to availability).
- Cancel your reservation: WestJet will put the unused value of your reservation into a Travel Bank credit valid for one year.
- Continue travelling at your own risk. If you choose to continue travelling after an advisory has been issued you are not eligible for compensation or a credit or refund.
Air Canada's hurricane policies
Air Canada has revised its ticketing policy enabling customers travelling on an affected flight to make changes to their booking without penalty, space permitting.
Travellers with affected flights can retrieve and change their bookings for free. If you purchased a holiday with Air Canada Vacations, contact them directly at 1-800-296-3408.
Air Canada guests are automatically enrolled to receive flight notifications to their mobile devices or by email. You can update your preferences online.
Flexible ticketing is in place on Sept. 27 for these destinations:
- Atlanta
- Charleston
- Charlotte
- Chicago
- Fort Myers
- Nashville
- Orlando
- Raleigh Durham
- Tampa
Air Canada recommends guests check their flight status or call Air Canada's automated flight information system at 1-888-422-7533 before heading to the airport.
Find more information about exciting destinations in B.C. and across the globe, as well as travel deals and tips, by signing up for V.I.A.'s weekly travel newsletter The Wanderer. Since travel deals can sell out, find out the day they are posted by signing up for our daily Travel Deals newsletter.
Want to learn more about a specific destination or have a travel concern or idea you would like V.I.A. to write about? Email us at [email protected]. Send us stories about recent holidays that you've been on, or if you have any tips you think our readers should know about.
With files from the Associated Press.
