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Winter weather conditions force travel cancellations and delays in SE Wisconsin

Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport was eerily quiet on Wednesday
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Posted at 4:25 PM, Feb 22, 2023
and last updated 2023-02-22 18:17:34-05

MILWAUKEE — Harsh weather conditions across Wisconsin and the country disrupted travel plans, forcing cancellations and delays.

Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport was eerily quiet on Wednesday after nearly a hundred flights were canceled. A spokesperson said airlines make those decisions and that the changes could be due to weather in other cities.

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Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport on Wednesday during the winter storm.

Mike LaMontagna and his wife Jen had plans to fly to Phoenix for his work trip before the weather hit. Once their flight was canceled the couple debated taking a shuttle to Chicago and flying out from there.

"I don't think we want to get stuck in a hotel at O'Hare," LaMontagna said. "Sometimes being home in Milwaukee is not a bad place to be."

Around 12:30 p.m. airline workers de-iced one of the last planes taking off for the day.

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Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport on Wednesday during the winter storm.

Airport crews were put on 12-hour shifts during the storm to keep the place safely open.

"For a storm like this it's less of a plowing operation and more of a de-icing operation on the runways and taxiways," said Harold Mester, director of public affairs and marketing at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport.

At the Milwaukee Intermodal Station, an attendant said most of the bus lines were canceled due to weather. Amtrak was still up and running.

"It's not snowing that bad here, but in Fond du Lac it's snowing really bad. It was kind of a struggle getting out of there," Jaylen Mason aka Sunny said.

Sunny has been ready for warmer days. His bus to Milwaukee got delayed so he missed an earlier train to Chicago.

"I was supposed to go visit my family and shoot music videos in Chicago," Sunny said.

Sunny still plans to make the trip but does not expect to have enough time to create music videos.

Like so many, Sunny has been rolling with the changes and waiting for the storm to pass.

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