COLORADO SPRINGS – Multiple flights to and from Chicago were canceled Thursday in Colorado Springs due to extremely cold temperatures in the midwest.
American and United flights to O’Hare International Airport were affected. An American flight leaving for O’Hare just after noon is still listed on the Colorado Springs Airport website as on time, but an airport spokesperson said that flight will likely be canceled as well.
About 1,700 flights have been canceled between Chicago-Midway and O’Hare due to the extreme cold. More than 1400 of those cancellations were at O’Hare International, which is one of the busiest airports in the U.S.
The National Weather Service reported that O’Hare hit a low temperature of -21 ° on Thursday. Chicago’s lowest temperature ever recorded was -27° on Jan. 20, 1985.
United Airlines has brought in heated tents to help employees on the tarmac. Aviation experts said extremely cold temperatures can impact equipment and fueling at airports.
Temperatures should bounce back into the single digits later Thursday and into the comparative balmy 20s by Friday.
(The Associated Press contributed to this story)
