ATLANTA -- A Delta Air Lines flight departed Atlanta Monday morning headed to Nassau, Bahamas, on the southern fringes of dangerous Hurricane Dorian, with winds in excess of 150 mph.
"We have an in-house team of meteorologists who monitor the wind and weather in our destinations and had determined that the conditions in Nassau were safe enough to fly this morning," according to a Delta spokesperson on Monday.
The flight, Delta flight 337, departed Atlanta at 10:20 Monday morning, headed to Nassau. Just before they got to their destination, the Boeing 717 was forced to turn around and head back to Atlanta.
According to Delta, the airport in Nassau was open on Monday. However, conditions in Nassau were too windy to allow the Delta flight to land.
Delta said the 42 passengers will be accommodated on a Delta Air Lines flight to Nassau on Tuesday.
In a statement today, Delta told 11Alive News, "Delta flight 337 returned to Atlanta out of abundance of caution when cross winds prevented the plane from landing in Nassau, Bahamas. All customers will be rebooked on flights tomorrow and Delta apologizes for the inconvenience."
The carrier says they will be providing hotels for their customers following the inconvenience.
The Atlanta-based air carrier said they were not the only airline to attempt the flight into Nassau's Lynden Pindling International Airport on Monday. Jet Blue attempted at least three flights from New York and Orlando into Nassau. All three were diverted to locations in Florida.
Delta said that all remaining scheduled flights to the Bahamas for Monday have been canceled and customers will be rebooked for Tuesday.
Delta said they are extending waivers for travelers going the Bahamas due to Hurricane Dorian
Hurricane Dorian remains a dangerous category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 155 mph and gusts to 190 mph.
State of Georgia Resources
- View up-to-date emergency declarations from Governor Kemp here.
- View updates from Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency here.
- Visit Ready Georgia for weather alerts and emergency preparedness tips.
- Follow Georgia 511 for real-time traffic information.
- Learn what to do before, during, and after a flood here.
- Report power outages by contacting your power provider. The two main providers in Georgia are:
- Call your local non-emergency police line to report a downed tree on a main road.
Please stay aware of any forecast changes as there are still many questions that remain about where Dorian goes after impacting Florida.
WATCHING DORIAN |