Thousands of Flights Delayed, Cancelled Amid Winter Storm

A winter storm is disrupting travel across the Northeast, prompting emergency declarations and thousands of flight delays and cancellations.

The Details: On Friday, FlightAware reported 1,710 flight cancellations and 8,816 delays nationwide as the region braced for the storm. By Saturday morning, an additional 637 flights within, into or out of the US had been canceled and nearly 900 delayed. The National Weather Service said New York City's Central Park recorded 4.3 inches of snow–the city's highest total since January 2022–while other parts of New York saw up to 7.5 inches. Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency for more than half of New York's counties ahead of the storm. Snowfall totals were higher in neighboring states, including 9.1 inches in Fairfield County, Connecticut and between 4 to 9 inches expected in New Jersey, where a state of emergency was also declared.

For Context: The storm, identified by the National Weather Service as winter storm Devin, prompted weather warnings from the Great Lakes through the Mid-Atlantic and southern New England. Officials in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania urged residents and travelers to exercise caution, while some states restricted commercial road traffic in anticipation of hazardous conditions. Meanwhile, parts of Washington state and Southern California have been experiencing heavy rain and significant flooding.

How the Media Covered It: Outlets across the political spectrum emphasized the impact of the storm and efforts to mitigate the delays and cancellations. Salon (Left bias) said the delays and cancellations were part of a broader aviation system problem, which it said has already been "grappling with staffing shortages, aging infrastructure and budget cuts." It wrote, the storm "highlight[s] the problems with the appearance-focused" Trump administration and said the impacts may linger after weather conditions improve. CNBC (Lean Left) said the storm was "putting airlines to the test" as they offer waived fees for customers. Outlets like New York Post (Lean Right) and Fox Business (Lean Right) heavily quoted travelers who were frustrated with the delays and the extent of the storm's reach and expected damages.

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