Fog At DIA Causes Delays, Diversions
DENVER (AP/CBS4) - Fog and wind caused delays at the Denver airport on Sunday, and 46 incoming flights were diverted to other cities on one of the busiest travel days of the year.
Most of the diverted flights landed in Colorado Springs, about 90 miles south, Denver International Airport spokeswoman Laura Coale said.
Incoming flights were delayed by about an hour Sunday afternoon, down from two hours earlier in the day. Departures were also delayed but times weren't available.
"It's not turning out to be the best travel day," Coale said.
Weather prevented the use of three of the airport's six runways, Coale said.
Passengers Like Tim McCall were delayed leaving Denver.
"It means I'm going to miss the first half of the Broncos game when I get to Vegas," McCall said.
His daughter Nicole Baumgart was also set back.
"It's always kind of hard when you're kind of anxious to get out on a busy travel day and then come to find out you'll be waiting around hours longer," she said.
A cold front that moved through Denver and other cities on Colorado's Front Range helped create the fog, National Weather Service meteorologist Kari Bowen said.
The temperature dropped 16 degrees in less than 30 minutes at the Denver airport because of the front, she said. In Greeley, about 60 miles north, the temperature fell 21 degrees in 20 minutes.
The Denver airport expected 166,000 passengers on Sunday and 157,000 on Monday as the Thanksgiving weekend wrapped up.
Normally, about 144,000 passengers a day use the airport.
Kenadee Walker found a comfortable spot in baggage claim as she and her friends awaited the arrival of a classmate whose plane was diverted.
"It turns out his flight got delayed and he landed in Nebraska. So we are waiting for him to arrive so we can finally go back and get some sleep," Walker said.
Denver was the fifth-busiest airport in the U.S. last year with 53 million passengers.
Ground traffic was heavy on Interstate 70 through the Colorado mountains on Sunday because of the holiday weekend and fresh snow that drew skiers to resorts, the Colorado Department of Transportation said.
Collisions were causing isolated highway delays.
(TM and © Copyright 2014 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2014 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
