Travelers are on notice as Hurricane Michael intensified into an extremely dangerous Category 4 storm overnight and is heading for landfall along the Florida Panhandle Wednesday.
According to Weather.com, the National Hurricane Center revealed Michael is likely to cause life-threatening storm surge along impacted coastlines, bring heavy rain that causes flash flooding and sustain maximum wind speeds of 145 miles per hour.
Menacing high resolution satellite imagery from the Gulf this morning… Major Hurricane #Michael is approx. 80 miles away from Panama City, FL and landfall is expected early this afternoon. Maximum sustained winds are currently 145 miles per hour (category 4) #HurricaneMichael pic.twitter.com/tAYIJ9aqhR
— Weather World (@WeatherWorldPSU) October 10, 2018
For cruise passengers, the storm is forcing lines to alter itineraries. Carnival Cruise Line has changed the originally planned courses of several ships, including the Carnival Miracle, Carnival Paradise, Carnival Glory, Carnival Freedom, Carnival Triumph and Carnival Victory.
Royal Caribbean’s Empress of the Seas was also caught in the hurricane near Cuba, and a passenger onboard shared a video on social media of the storm impacting the voyage:
Live look: @RoyalCaribbean’s #EmpressoftheSeas chasing #HurricaneMichael around #Cuba. Arrival to #Havana severely delayed.@CruiseCritic @weatherchannel @SAWeatherServic @bbcweather @breakingweather @TheWeatherStn #tropicalstormmichael #storm #caribbean #lightning #cruiseship pic.twitter.com/52vK6tUjNX
— Snapper Tams (@SnapperTams) October 9, 2018
Rail travelers will also have to deal with delays and cancellations as Amtrak is modifying service to Florida, including adjusting the schedules for The Silver Star line and The Palmetto line. Amtrak will waive additional charges for impacted customers changing their reservations.
Airlines are also feeling the impact of Hurricane Michael, as carriers have started canceling flights and continue issuing waivers for impacted travelers. According to FlightAware.com, 240 flights were canceled in the United States Wednesday and another 329 were delayed.
Due to #HurricaneMichael, flights in your area could be delayed and possibly cancelled. Please continue to check the status of your flight with your airline. You can also check the status of major airports at https://t.co/TUgXxG0jZc. #FlySafe #TravelSafe https://t.co/GfBQTE5LF4
— The FAA (@FAANews) October 9, 2018
Travelers looking to see if their airline is offering waivers as a result of the storm, here is a full list of carriers waiving change fees:
Allegiant Air
—Travel advisory lasts through October 12 and applies to airports in Destin, Florida; Gulfport, Mississippi; Jacksonville, Florida; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; and Savannah, Georgia
—Travel advisory lasts through October 11 and applies to airports in Destin/Fort Walton Beach, Florida; Mobile, Alabama; Panama City, Florida; Pensacola, Florida; and Tallahassee, Florida.
Delta Air Lines
—Travel advisory lasts through October 11 and applies to airports in Albany, Georgia; Augusta, Georgia; Dothan, Georgia; Fort Walton Beach, Florida; Mobile, Alabama; Panama City, Florida; Pensacola, Florida; Tallahassee, Florida; and Valdosta, Georgia
To prepare for Hurricane Michael’s landfall, we’ve waived baggage fees and capped fares to help impacted customers. https://t.co/XpCh4koUxM
— Delta (@Delta) October 9, 2018
Frontier Airlines
—Travel advisory lasts through October 11 and applies to airports in Pensacola, Florida; Atlanta, Georgia; Birmingham, Alabama; and Tampa, Florida.
—Travel advisory lasts through October 13 and applies to airports in Tampa, Florida; Atlanta, Georgia; New Orleans, Louisiana; Panama City, Florida; Pensacola, Florida; Charleston, South Carolina; Norfolk, Virginia; and Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina.
—Travel advisory lasts through October 11 and applies to airports in Mobile, Alabama; Atlanta, Georgia; Savannah, Georgia; Fort Walton Beach, Florida; Pensacola, Florida; Panama City, Florida; Charleston, South Carolina; Columbia, South Carolina; Greenville-Spartanburg, South Carolina; and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.