And so it begins.
Virtually every major airline issued free travel waivers on Friday and Saturday, as weather-related events threaten to delay or cancel travel plans this weekend – and even into Monday in some spots in the U.S.
And don’t call it a perfect storm. Call it three perfect storms in a good portion of the country that includes thunderstorms, heavy wind and potential tornadoes; flooding; and a massive snowstorm.
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Weather alerts have been issued for the following states in the eastern half of the U.S., according to CNN:
– Nearly 50 million people are under a flood watch in parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, New York and Vermont. Tornado warnings were issued in Texas on Friday, and in Louisiana on Saturday, where college football’s national championship game between LSU and Clemson is set to take place on Monday night in New Orleans.
– About 35 million are under a winter weather alert in parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine.
– And more than 20 million are under a wind advisory in parts of Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Kentucky and Indiana.
As part of its preparation for at least the wind and ice portion of the storms, virtually every U.S. airline has issued weather waivers for travel between Jan. 11-13, according to The Points Guy.
Allegiant has only issued a weather alert so far through cities in the Midwest and Great Lakes, but American, Delta, Frontier, JetBlue, Spirit and United have all offered waivers to its customers.
As of 3:30 p.m. Saturday, there have been 1,956 flights canceled today and more than 4,200 flights into, out of, and within the U.S. that have been delayed, according to FlightAware.com