Thanksgiving travel snarled by coast-to-coast storm bringing rain and snow

With Thanksgiving holiday travel well underway, many have reached their destinations — but for everybody else, a storm tracking from the Rockies to the Midwest and Northeast into Thursday will bring rain and snow, likely impacting flights and packed roads.

Just shy of three million people were expected to be screened by the Transportation Security Administration on Wednesday, and a record 71.7 million were expected travel by automotive over Thanksgiving — over 1 million greater than last yr.

The storm, which dropped snow over the Rockies Wednesday morning and slowed by the afternoon, is forecast to race east throughout Wednesday to the Midwest and Northeast through Thanksgiving.

It’ll bring rain, with the potential for ice and snow, that can intensify within the evening from St. Louis to Indianapolis and into Pittsburgh.

Overnight, the storm will proceed to maneuver eastward, bringing cold rain along the I-95 corridor, from Richmond to Boston, within the early hours of Thanksgiving morning.

As of Wednesday night, there have been nearly 4,000 delays and 45 cancelled flights inside, into or out of the U.S., based on FlightAware.

American Airlines said it operated nearly 6,400 mainline and regional flights on Tuesday and expected greater than 650,000 customers to travel Wednesday across nearly 6,400 flights — that is almost 4.5 American flights departing every minute of the day.

A ground delay at Newark Liberty International Airport in Recent Jersey, as a result of a shortage of air traffic controllers, was in place Wednesday starting at 1 p.m. ET to 2 a.m. Thursday.

There have been greater than 300 delays in total out of Newark on Wednesday, with some at the very least 95 minutes long.

The FAA said on X Wednesday afternoon that delays were expected in Denver and Salt Lake City as a result of snow and ice. 

In those cities, airport officials were deicing planes to get them ready for departure. Denver was leading the pack with 600 flight delays Wednesday.

Delays were also common in Boston, Dallas and Las Vegas, where delays were within the triple digits, based on FlightAware.

Fog in Tampa was affecting departures Wednesday, with Tampa International Airport reporting 37 outbound delays, based on FlightAware. Delays were also a problem in Seattle and Los Angeles, where low ceilings were expected to cause some impacts on operations, the FAA said earlier Wednesday.

For road travelers, I-80, I-64, I-75 were impacted by rain Wednesday, and I-25 and I-70 by snow within the Rockies. 

Thanksgiving Day will bring a multitude of rain for the I-95 corridor from Florida to Maine, and heavy snow for the inside Northeast and Recent England.

Points north of the Hudson Valley in upstate Recent York and interior Recent England can expect 1 to three inches of wet snow, with localized totals of over 6 inches at highest mountain peaks.

From northeast Pennsylvania to Recent Hampshire, 3 to six inches of snow — and potentially much more — is feasible, with windy conditions potentially resulting in power outages in the realm.

The long-lasting Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will go on rain or shine, because the Big Apple is forecast to see soaking rain with temperatures within the 40s. Winds are forecast to be lower than 10 mph, which can allow balloons to fly. The parade’s beloved balloons cannot fly if maximum sustained winds hit 23 mph or greater or if gusts exceed 34 mph.

East Coast cities including Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Recent York, Hartford and Boston can expect a chilly rain, with rainfall totals between .50 to 1 inch. Road travel shall be slick as far south as Virginia and Maryland, including through the I-95 corridor into Maine. 

By the overnight hours into Friday morning, travel will settle to mostly normal conditions because the system pushes out of the Recent England area.

Nonetheless, cold winds in Recent England and a lake effect snow event across the Great Lakes will take hold and can proceed through Sunday.

Airport hubs to look at Thursday include Atlanta, Charlotte, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, NYC, Boston, Pittsburgh and Buffalo.

On Sunday — typically the busiest travel day of Thanksgiving week, as people return home from holiday trips — the cold will proceed across swaths of the country, in addition to lake effect snow across the Great Lakes and Northeast.

A complete of three million persons are predicted to go through TSA on Sunday, nearing the record of 3.01 million that was set the Sunday following the Fourth of July holiday this yr.

Chicago and Detroit may even see some problems at their airports on Sunday, however the East and West Coast look favorable for road and air travel.

All of the while, much of the northern Plains and upper Midwest will see bitter cold to shut out the week, with temperatures forecast to be 10 to twenty degrees below average starting on Thanksgiving Day.

From Thursday to Sunday, Chicago will see highs within the 30s and 20s and lows in the teenagers, Recent York will see highs within the 40s and lows dip to around 28F, and D.C. will see highs within the 50s and 40s and lows within the 30s and high 20s. Minneapolis will see lows into the one digits over the weekend. 

As travelers take to the skies to hitch family members, authorities are warning individuals who leave their cars in airport parking lots to take caution as a result of vehicle thefts.

Over 300 cars were stolen from the nation’s busiest airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, this yr — nearly thrice as many as last yr, Atlanta police said.

“Suspects can program key fobs to vehicles and that has gotten us here where we at the moment are,” Maj. Kelley Collier, the Atlanta Airport precinct commander said. This yr, police are adding cameras, motorcycle patrols, and recent fencing to curb crime across its 30,000 parking spaces. 

Greater than 50 vehicles were also stolen from Dallas Fort Value International Airport this yr, as police said a automotive theft ring targeting airports across multiple states was responsible. DFW Airport Police arrested the alleged ringleader last month.

A lady named Katy told NBC News that she and her husband went on a piece trip and returned to Columbus International Airport to search out their automotive was gone.

“In complete disbelief that we had parked attached to an airport and got here out and our automotive was gone. We just assumed it was more secure and secure in that kind of an environment,” she said. Police later found it abandoned and completely stripped. 

“I’m hoping that the airports will beef up their security in order that we are able to travel and are available back and have your automotive there,” she added.