As Tropical Storm Debby soaks North Carolina, it continues to disrupt people’s travel plans at the Charlotte airport.
In fact, passengers at Charlotte Douglas International Airport could expect problems throughout the week. According to FlightAware, an online site that provides real-time information, there were 34 delayed and nine canceled flights at CLT as of 7:30 a.m. Thursday morning, for a total of 43 disruptions.
There were a total of 1,651 delayed flights in CLT over the weekend. Since the weekend and through Thursday morning, there have been 3,403 delayed or canceled flights.
Debby arrived in the country in Florida became a hurricane around 7 a.m. Monday, bringing with it a storm surge of several feet and sustained winds of 80 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
The National Weather Service announced that a flash flood warning is in effect for Mecklenburg County until 11 a.m. Thursday. The warning, issued just after 5 a.m., says about 1 to 2 inches of rain have already fallen in the area.
Duke Energy reported that as of 7:21 a.m., 16,067 customers were without power in Mecklenburg County and 229 customers were actively affected by the outage.
As of 11 p.m. Wednesday, the storm was located about 65 miles south-southwest of Myrtle Beach and moving northeast at about 3 miles per hour.
The storm is moving inland over South Carolina, and there remains a high risk of flooding in parts of the Carolinas and western Virginia, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Forecasters say eastern North Carolina will see the most rain as Debby moves up the East Coast. The Charlotte area is on high alert for heavy rain and flooding Thursday and Friday morning, National Weather Service forecasters said.
President Joe Biden has declared a state of emergency in North Carolina, authorizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide public safety assistance, according to a FEMA press release. The agency is working with federal and state agencies to coordinate efforts and resources to effectively respond to the challenges posed by Debby.
American Airlines keeps an eye on Debby
According to spokeswoman Bri Harper, American Airlines is monitoring the path of the storm. The airline is responsible for 87 percent of all flights from Charlotte Douglas.
Customers whose travel plans are affected by Debby can rebook without incurring a change fee, according to an American Airlines travel alert. They can rebook their trip on aa.com or by calling reservations in the U.S. or Canada at 800-433-7300.
Charlotte Douglas will remain open for stranded passengers during the storm, CLT officials said.
This is an evolving story
