Power outage at JFK Airport's Terminal 1 continues to cause problems for travelers
NEW YORK -- John F. Kennedy International Airport's Terminal 1 was still not up and running late Thursday night after an early morning fire caused a power disruption.
It has caused all kinds of delays and cancellations, with some travelers being bused to different terminals and others to different airports.
The Port Authority has been working with passengers that were supposed to fly out of Terminal 1. Some were bused to Terminal 4.
"It feels like a movie, like it's not real. I'm still waiting for them to say it's a joke," student Isabella Bivas said.
Due to power disruption at Terminal 1, some flights may be arriving and departing from different terminals. Travelers are urged to check with their carriers for flight status.
— John F. Kennedy Airport (@JFKairport) February 16, 2023
Unfortunately, what happened Thursday is no laughing matter. Passengers flying out of Terminal 1 were met with news that their flights were canceled.
"I was surprised we were informed so close to the time of the flight because the fire was last night. So had I known sooner, I would've tried to book a flight from Newark or try to figure some other way to get across the Atlantic," traveler John Helyar said.
The FDNY said it tended to a small paint can fire in a utility room at 3 a.m. The Port Authority said an electrical panel failure overnight caused the fire. For the rest of the day, there were no inbound or outbound flights to Terminal 1.
"Frankly, it's just terrible that the whole terminal is shut down," student Jackson Snyder said.
There were issues in the air, too. An Air New Zealand flight that was already eight hours into its route to JFK had to make a U-turn and return to New Zealand.
CBS2 saw a line of passengers that will have to be bussed to Stewart International Airport in Orange County to get on their flight to London, which is delayed seven hours.
"It's not gonna ruin my vacation. I'm still gonna have a good time," traveler Jeffrey Fisher said.
Other travelers said they don't know when they'll get out.
"I just don't know. It seems like we'll get a hotel if we have to stay overnight and figure it out," Ana Larochelle said.
Travelers are being urged to check with their carriers.