Hurricane Milton: Some Florida-bound flights cancelled in Toronto

Hurricane Milton is about to hit Florida and Toronto Pearson International Airport says several flights to the state have been cancelled as a result.

“We are seeing a number of airlines that have cancelled flights to the Florida area, and we’re also seeing a number of airports that have also shut down operations,” Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) spokesperson Erica Vella told CP24 in an interview Wednesday.

At least five Florida airports have closed in anticipation of the Category 4 storm, including Tampa Bay, Orlando, Fort Myers, Sarasota, and St. Petersburg.

Milton is expected to make landfall in the Tampa Bay area late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning and much of the state’s western side is under a mandatory evacuation order.

Danna Haydar is originally from Toronto, but lives in Tampa, and struggled to get north of the border with her two young children ahead of the storm.

“We knew that we wanted to get out for this one,” she told CP24, noting that her family could not get a flight out of the area due to the airport closures and opted to drive to Atlanta instead.

“Yesterday afternoon it was sunny [in Tampa], you would never know what’s coming and that’s indicative of what happens before all hurricanes…But this one just feels a little bit different as far as when it was on track to hit us directly,” she said.

Tampa Bay resident Danna Haydar speaks to CP24 on Wednesday Oct. 9, 2024 about escaping Hurricane Milton.

A major hurricane has not hit the Tampa Bay area directly in more than a century. Earlier this week, U.S. President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for the entire state.

On Wednesday, Air Canada announced it was cancelling all flights to Fort Myers, Orlando and Tampa until at least the end of the week, when the storm is expected to move over Florida into the Atlantic Ocean. In a post to social media, the airline said it is offering a flexible rebooking policy and adding 1,100 seats after the storm passes.

Meanwhile, Porter Airlines cancelled all Florida-bound flights for Wednesday, and said that flights to Orlando on Thursday would also be rescheduled. Passengers on those flights will be rebooked automatically for flights later in the week, the airline said.

Airports in Fort Lauderdale and Miami are not currently in the storm’s path and are operating normally for the time being. One passenger leaving Pearson airport for Fort Lauderdale Wednesday morning admitted the incoming hurricane is making her feel “stressed.”

“It does leave me on edge, but at the same time, it’s out of my control, and I will handle it when I’m there, the best that I can,” the traveller told CP24.

Vella advised passengers with an upcoming Florida-bound flight out of Pearson to check their flight status before they get to the airport.

Hydro One sends 150 crew members to Florida

Hydro One says it’s sending 150 crew members to Florida to restore electricity taken out in Milton’s wake.

The Ontario-based power company announced Wednesday morning that the employees are currently on their way.

“While many of us prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, 150 team members will be away from their families, in position to restore power safely once Hurricane Milton has passed alongside crews from Florida Power and Light,” the company said in a news release Wednesday morning.

A group of Hydro One workers heading to Florida to assist with power restoration in the wake of Hurricane Milton are seen in this undated image. (Hydro One)

Hydro One said 100 of those team members are already in the southern U.S., assisting Georgia Power in restoring electricity following Hurricane Helene, which the company estimates left 650,000 without power in that state.

The additional 50 Hydro One employees being sent to Florida are forestry workers, the company said.

Hydro One said the deployment is made possible as part of reciprocal agreements made within the North Atlantic Mutual Assistance Group, where utility companies can assist with “significant” power outages