Hurricane Ian is disrupting businesses and travel in Florida as it barreled toward the state’s west coast Tuesday, grounding flights and forcing Tampa International Airport to suspend all flight operations beginning at 5 p.m.
Airport officials said they are halting flights to prepare the airfield and terminals for the storm by securing jet bridges, planes and other equipment.
“It’s a very dangerous system,” Tampa International Airport CEO Joe Lopano said in a press conference. “With the storm and the intensity of the winds we will close today at 5 p.m.”
Lopano noted that airlines had already cancelled local flights and moved aircraft to safer areas. By midday, a total of 147 flights into or out of Tampa airport had been cancelled, according to FlightAware, a real-time flight tracking website. Another seven flights were delayed.
“To my knowledge, we have never had a storm of this magnitude,” John Tiliacos, executive vice president of airport operations said at the press conference.
The airport operates about 450 flights a day, and it’s unclear how quickly it will be able to reopen. It is located close to Tampa Bay, with Ian expected to produce 10-15 feet of storm surge plus 15-20 inches of rain, as well as high tides.
Airport chief executive Lopano said he expects the financial toll of shutting down for a couple days to be “in the millions.”
“And unfortunately Ian is not giving us a choice. And so we’ll just make it as painless as we can,” he added.
Ian heads for Disney
Walt Disney World in Orlando is also halting some its hotel and theme park operations in anticipation of Ian wreaking havoc on its grounds.
“Walt Disney World Resort is preparing for necessary operational adjustments based on the latest information from the National Weather Service,” the company said in a statement on its website.
The theme park remains open, but some of its attractions and lodging alternatives, including the Copper Creek Cabins at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, the Treehouse Villas at Disney’s Saratoga Springs and the Bungalows at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, will be closed Wednesday through Friday.
Lost oil production
The Hurricane has already disrupted the energy sector, too, with oil producers BP and Chevron halting production at offshore oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.
On Monday, BP said it had evacuated personnel from its Na Kika platform, which produces 130,000 barrels of oil per day as well as 550 million cubic feet per day of natural gas. It is also cutting production at its Thunder Horse platform, which produces 250,000 barrels of oil per day, as well as 200 million cubic feet per day of natural gas.
Chevron also said it is removing personnel from its Petronius and Blind Faith platforms and temporarily suspending operations at the facilities. Combined, they produce around 120,000 barrels of oil per day.
