Accidentally cut wire triggers travel chaos at major US airports as passengers face seven-hour delays
A travel nightmare engulfed five major Northeast airports Monday after construction contractors accidentally severed a Verizon cable.
Ground stops are in effect for Newark Liberty International (EWR), Teterboro (TEB), Philadelphia International (PHL) and John F Kennedy International (JFK), with some delays reaching four hours.
Meanwhile, flights departing from LaGuardia Airport (LGA) in Queens, Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) and Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) are also facing ground delays.
Passengers flying out of EWR reported they were stuck on planes for hours before returning to the gates.
Bryan Bedford, the administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), said Monday that the 600-foot fiber cable cut occurred ‘somewhere between’ New Brunswick and Newark, New Jersey.
‘Somebody dug it up,’ Bedford told reporters, as captured on video by CBS News.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said an Amtrak crew mistakenly severed the fiber-optic line during construction, triggering the telecommunications failure and widespread flight disruptions.
‘This incident underscores the need for additional funding to modernize aging infrastructure and prevent disruptions like this in the future,’ Duffy wrote on social platform X.
Flight tracking data captured dozens of planes sitting on the runway in Newark, as passengers said they were stranded for hours before returning to the gates
The FAA has ordered flights bound for EWR to remain at their departure airports because of the ongoing equipment outage.
The ground stop is scheduled to remain in effect until at least 4.45pm ET, with a moderate chance it will be extended.
Passengers are now facing average delays of three hours and eight minutes, while the worst delay has surged to nearly seven hours, according to the FAA alerts.
Another ground stop has been issued for flights heading to PHL, with affected planes being held at their departure airports from 3.50pm until at least 5pm, with a moderate chance the stop will be extended.
Average delays have climbed to four hours and 13 minutes, while some passengers could wait as long as six hours and 27 minutes.
The FAA also ordered flights bound for Teterboro Airport to remain at their departure points across the US and parts of Canada.
The ground stop is scheduled to remain in effect until at least 4.45pm, with a moderate chance it will be extended.
Average delays have reached two hours and 35 minutes, while the longest delay has surged to seven hours and 17 minutes.
This is a breaking news story… More updates to come.
