Severe storms cause more than 1,000 U.S. flight delays this week, NBC reports

NBC News reported on Thursday, May 21, that severe storms had already delayed more than 1,000 flights within, into or out of the United States as Memorial Day weekend travel began. The outlet said nearly 290 flights had also been canceled by Thursday morning, citing FlightAware data. The same report said heavy rain, flash flooding and repeated rounds of storms were expected to affect large parts of the country through the holiday weekend. The disruption comes as airports, highways and weather forecasters brace for one of the busiest U.S. travel periods of the year. ### Where were the flight disruptions showing up first? Flight delays were already piling up by Thursday morning, according to NBC, which cited FlightAware’s count of more than 1,000 delayed flights and nearly 290 cancellations. NBC said the delays covered flights within, into or out of the United States. LaGuardia Airport in New York told travelers to plan ahead after one of its runways was closed Wednesday because of a sinkhole, NBC reported. (nbcnews.com) The airport said the runway was expected to reopen before Friday’s flight operations. The Federal Aviation Administration’s National Airspace System dashboard, updated early Friday, showed possible or probable traffic management programs later in the day for airports including San Francisco, Teterboro, Washington Reagan, Atlanta, Orlando, Tampa and Charlotte. (nbcnews.com) The FAA dashboard also listed possible route restrictions affecting traffic to Florida, Houston-area airports, Dallas-Fort Worth and East Coast corridors. ### Which parts of the country faced the highest flood threat? Southern and southeast Texas were among the first areas flagged for flooding risk. NBC said a flood watch was in effect for parts of that region, including Galveston and Corpus Christi, with rainfall rates that could reach 2 to 4 inches per hour. NBC also named Port Lavaca as a city where flooding was possible. (nasstatus.faa.gov) The National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center said in its Friday excessive rainfall discussion that a broad corridor from the Gulf Coast into the Ohio Valley faced moderate to heavy rain. The agency said short-term training of storms or repeat rounds of convection could create runoff problems. ### How far north was the storm risk expected to spread? (nbcnews.com) NBC said rain and storms were expected Thursday in the mid-Atlantic, the Southeast and the Plains, with some areas at risk for flash flooding through the weekend. The outlet added that by Friday and Saturday, showers and storms were forecast to spread into the Ohio Valley, the Northeast, the mid-Atlantic and the Southeast. (forecast.weather.gov) The Weather Prediction Center said Friday there was a slight risk of excessive rainfall over parts of the upper Ohio Valley and southern Appalachians through Saturday morning. Its day-two outlook then highlighted much of eastern Texas and western Louisiana for a slight risk from Saturday into Sunday. ### Which cities did forecasters single out? (nbcnews.com) Houston, Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Shreveport and Lake Charles were among the cities NBC said could see flash flooding through the weekend. The report said several rounds of rain were expected from the southern Plains to the Mississippi Valley, with widespread totals of 1 to 3 inches forecast. The Weather Prediction Center said the Texas risk would likely build Saturday morning into the afternoon as another round of organized convection moved across eastern and southern parts of the state. (forecast.weather.gov) The agency said eastern Texas and western Louisiana were the main focus in that period. ### What should travelers watch next? Friday’s FAA planning outlook pointed to possible ground stops, delay programs and reroutes later in the day at major airports from the Northeast to Florida and Texas. (nbcnews.com) Those advisories can change as storms develop, but they are the formal signals airlines and passengers watch for systemwide disruption. Saturday, May 23, is the next key forecast window in the Weather Prediction Center outlook, with eastern Texas and western Louisiana under a slight excessive-rainfall risk and additional storms expected farther east and north. (forecast.weather.gov) Travelers can track airport-specific updates through the FAA status dashboard and airline alerts as the holiday weekend begins. (nasstatus.faa.gov)