Westjet cancels Hawaii flights as Hurricane Lane bears down on islands
Storm could be the most powerful to hit the islands in decades
WestJet has cancelled all its regularly scheduled flights in and out of Hawaii on Thursday and Friday because of the approaching hurricane bearing down on the Pacific islands.
Hurricane Lane, which could be the most powerful storm to hit Hawaii since Hurricane Iniki in 1992, was forecast to continue its northwest turn toward the islands on Thursday.
"At this time, we are not taking any more guests in-bound to Hawaii," said a statement issued by WestJet on Thursday morning.
"However, we will be operating two, non-scheduled recovery flights out of Hawaii this morning: one from Honolulu and one from Maui."
The cancellations come as the Canadian government warns Canadians to avoid all non-essential travel to Hawaii because of the approaching hurricane.
"Avoid non-essential travel to Hawaii County, Maui County, including the islands of Maui, Lanai, Molokai, Kahoolawe, as well as to Oahu and Kauai islands due to Hurricane Lane," says the advisory.
- Check further updates on WestJet's travel advisories
- Check the Canadian travel advisory
- Track Hurricane Lane on Google Crisis Response
Vancouverite Rob Cottingham is on vacation with his family on the island of Oahu. He says people are busy stocking up on fuel and supplies as they await further word from authorities.
"I went to grocery stores and drug stores last night and folks just cleared out the water aisles completely," he said on Wednesday.
Guests urged to obey emergency officials
WestJet is in the process of contacting guests who were to fly out of both islands Thursday evening to let them know that an earlier departure has been scheduled on the recovery flights.
"Guests from Friday's flights are also being contacted and will be rebooked on extra flight segments this weekend when it is safe to resume flying, post-hurricane."
"We urge our guests to follow all emergency response instructions provided by local authorities. The situation is extremely fluid and we continue to monitor Hurricane Lane's path closely," said the airline.
The airline is advising all passengers travelling to or from cities affected by Hurricane Lane to check the status of their flights prior to leaving for the airport.
WestJet cancellations:
Aug. 23
- WS1864 from Vancouver to Honolulu
- WS1865 from Honolulu to Vancouver
- WS1852 from Vancouver to Kahului
- WS1853 from Kahului to Vancouver
Aug. 24
- WS1864 from Vancouver to Honolulu
- WS1865 from Honolulu to Vancouver
- WS1852 from Vancouver to Kahului
- WS1853 from Kahului to Vancouver