Hurricane Matthew wreaks havoc on travel plans

As Hurricane Matthew pounds down on Florida, many Ontario residents are scrambling to adjust their vacation plans or find a way home.

Thousands of flights in and out of Florida were cancelled Thursday and Friday due to the Category 4 storm, airports have closed, and some cruise lines are diverting their scheduled routes.

Travel agent Carolyn Williams, based in the Greater Toronto Area, said she's been working nonstop to get her customers out of the area.

"It's been a scramble to try and accommodate all these people that need to either get home, or people that are trying to get down to their vacation," said Williams, who owns Pure Magic Vacations, a company specializing in Disney packages.

Williams said many vacationing Canadians are stranded in the United States waiting two to four days, or making "crazy connections" to get home.

Others still in Canada have been forced to delay or cancel their holiday plans.

While many airlines aren't pressing fees on people who have to change their flights, Williams said that's not a lot of comfort for those stuck in storm areas.

"It's one thing not to have to pay the fees but then you have to get a seat," she said.

"Most people would pay the fees at this point just to get home."

Brampton family 'locked down' in Disney hotel

Hurricane Matthew has killed at least 283 people in Haiti, after hitting earlier this week.

In Florida, 1.5 million people have been told to evacuate their homes, as were hundreds of thousands of others in Georgia and South Carolina.

Walt Disney World was forced to close on Thursday for the fourth time in the park's 45-year history.

Sharon Williams and her family, who live in Brampton, are currently "locked down" in a Disney hotel in Florida. They've been told to stay inside Thursday night and into Friday, and people have been moved away from the water.

Williams told CBC News on Thursday night that the Disney Wilderness Lodge is well stocked with food and is still running like a resort

"Inside it's still been safe and secure and they're doing everything they can to keep us safe at this point in time," she said

Williams is scheduled to fly out on Saturday, and is hoping everything will be back to normal by then.

Back in Ontario, Carolyn Williams agrees.

"The main thing right now is everybody has to sit tight and see what this storm does," she said.

"That's kind of what's keeping us up all night is just watching to see what's going to happen and hoping for the best for everyone and we'll just keep pushing through and trying to get everybody home."

Air Canada said it has sent larger planes to Florida to help get more people whose trips have been disrupted back to Canada.