Summary
- Flooding at LaGuardia Airport reached historic levels during the recent storms, causing partial closure and cancelations. Passengers in Terminal A were particularly affected.
- LaGuardia Airport has experienced the worst flooding since Superstorm Sandy, but the two newer terminals were unaffected.
- Despite recent renovations, Terminal A at LaGuardia Airport lacks an upgraded drainage system. The Port Authority will likely prioritize improving the facility’s drainage system to prevent future flooding.
Amid historic flooding in the New York City area this past weekend, shocking new videos have emerged demonstrating the extent of flooding inside LaGuardia Airport (LGA). Passengers who were still seeking to catch flights were filmed walking through inches of water on their way through both the security line and to the gates.
According to reports from passengers to NBC New York, the water entered the terminal building through the bathrooms. Notably, only one of the airport’s three terminals flooded, and only passengers traveling from Terminal A encountered water within the terminal.
A sequence of events
By 11:00 on Friday, the terminal building had already been shut down amid historic rains in the area and all flights in and out of the terminal had been canceled or moved to a different terminal. This flooding marks the worst at the airport since Superstorm Sandy over a decade ago.
By the evening, around 23:00, the terminal had reopened, and some passengers braved the water to get to their flights, some of whom were seen walking barefoot. These travelers were all preparing to catch flights on Frontier Airlines or Spirit Airlines, the two carriers that operate out of Terminal A. The terminal isn’t too big, with all gates within a two-minute walk of the security area, meaning passengers thankfully did not have to walk all that far.
However, given the nature of the flooding, all flights until 04:00 were promptly canceled. As a result, passengers were prompted to take shuttle buses to the other terminals. Once 04:00 came around, the airport attempted to resume normal efforts but faced massive operational delays throughout the day on Saturday.
Throughout this entire time, both other terminals at LaGuardia remained open but major delays continued due to extensive flooding of the airport’s refueling area. Over the course of the flooding, nearly a quarter of the airport’s flights were completely canceled.
A recent renovation
While flooding at a major airport is obviously a point of concern, many New Yorkers have been especially disappointed considering the nearly $8 billion renovation plan for the airport that has been so highly publicized. Recently, Terminal B underwent renovations, reopening with extensive upgrades in 2020. An entirely new terminal, Terminal C, opened on 4 June 2022 with four different concourses and serves as Delta’s hub at LGA.
Notably, both of these terminals took into account the risk of flooding during the renovation and construction process, and as a result, both are equipped with brand-new state-of-the-art drainage systems. Terminal 1, being a historical building, has yet to undergo the same level of extensive renovation. While there is a proposal in place to upgrade the facility’s drainage system, the project has not yet been completed.
However, given this weekend’s events, it is highly likely that renovating Terminal A’s drainage system will become a priority. Across the board, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the area’s major airports, will need to reevaluate how to prevent its facilities from flooding going forward.
Source: NBC New York