Hurricane Earl picks terrible timing

Menacing Hurricane Earl picked poor timing to arrive as North American vacationers face concerns about powerful winds and relentless rains during the last summer holiday weekend of Labor Day.
 

"It’s terrible timing for Labor Day," said CNN meteorologist Angela Fritz. "It’s not going to be nice vacation weather anywhere from South Carolina up through Maine."
 

The menace is particularly strong for anyone heading to parts of the East Coast, reported CNN.
 

Hurricane Earl should make its closest pass to the outer Banks of North Carolina Friday morning, officials said. Other parts of the east coast could also be impacted, as well as beach-goers in that area.
 

Hurricane warnings are already in place over a large portion of the North Carolina coast and mandatory evacuation orders are in effect for some of the barrier islands.
 

The Outer Banks is generally one of the most popular vacation destinations on Labor Day.
 

There hasn’t been "a flood" of cancellations so far, said Janice Farr, senior vice president of Sun Realty, which manages more than 1,200 vacation homes in the region.
 

She expects 70 percent occupancy, which is typical of the weekend. Most Labor Day guests will check in on Saturday, after the storm passes, Farr added.
 

"Chances are we’ll have some rain on Friday and a beautiful weekend. Even if the storm is whipping up the ocean you can still visit, you can … go to shops, visit the town centers."
 

But residents and tourists in the region were urged to create a plan to evacuate if necessary, said FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate, according to the Cape Cod Times.
 

As it moves along and towards the East Coast — notably North Carolina and Virginia but as far north as New York — some airlines are beginning to offer passengers a way to change their tickets.
 

Delta Air Lines Inc., the country’s biggest airline, said customers traveling to or through several Eastern cities could make one-time changes to their travel schedules without fees. The changes are allowed for people with flights on Thursday or Friday. The waiver covers more than 20 airports, including those in the New York area, Washington, Boston, Baltimore, and Wilmington, N.C.
 

Frontier Airlines announced a waiver for flights to or from airports in Newport News/Williamsburg, Va., and Raleigh/Durham, N.C. Travel may be changed for those cities through Saturday.
 

AirTran Airways said customers traveling through several Eastern cities, including San Juan, Puerto Rico, could change their reservations without penalty
 

Other air travelers are advised to check with their carriers about the status of their flights.
 

By David Wilkening

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Hurricane Earl is threatening air travel this weekend despite being downgraded today to a category three hurricane.

Some airlines are preparing for potential travel waivers that allow one-time free changes in itineraries if the hurricane impacts a traveler’s destination.
For
Extras Airlines began offering passengers a way to change their tickets as Hurricane Earl threatened to disrupt travel along the East Coast.
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1. Updated 40 minutes ago N.C. widens evacuations as Earl approaches
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. The penalty-free change applies to flights booked for Wednesday through Saturday. AirTran is owned by AirTran Holdings Inc.
Video: Northeast braces for Earl’s impact (on this page)
Frontier Airlines said travelers scheduled to pass through Newport News, Va. or Raleigh, N.C. between Wednesday and Saturday could change their travel dates without a fee. Customers who have not yet begun their trip could end up paying higher fares in some cases, Frontier

• View an interactive graphic that explains hurricanes and looks at previous storms’ paths decade by decade..
more information, visit frontierairlines.com.
Continental Airlines also has announced travel options for customers who flight plans may be impacted by Earl.
"Storm conditions are expected to make air travel difficult on the United States East Coast, forcing some delays and cancellations of flights at airports in the region, including at (Continental’s) hub at Newark Liberty International Airport," the airline said in a statement. "To avoid inconvenience, travelers may wish to delay commencement of their trip."
Continental is allowing changes for itineraries involving affected airports through Sunday. Details are available at continental.com.
Ann Schrader: 303-954-1967 or [email protected].

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