The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Advertiser disclosure
The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
News
Over 1,000 Flights Cancelled and 5 States Declare Emergency Ahead of Hurricane Florence
JT is a location-independent digital nomad traveling 250,000+ miles each year with his wife Katie.
September 13, 2018 • 12 min read
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
Related stories
Quick summary
Hurricane Florence is causing widespread airport closures and over 1,000 flight cancellations across the Carolinas and surrounding states.
Major storm surge and torrential rain are expected, with forecasts predicting up to 13 feet of coastal flooding and as much as 40 inches of rain in some areas.
Airlines are issuing travel waivers, allowing affected travelers to change or cancel flights without standard penalties, and some are capping fares or waiving baggage and pet-in-cabin fees.
Power outages could impact more than 3 million residents, and emergency declarations have been issued in multiple states.
What to consider
Waiver eligibility varies by airline, with specific travel dates, covered airports and ticket purchase deadlines outlined for each carrier.
Some waivers allow changes to origin or destination cities, but fare differences may apply depending on the new itinerary and timing.
The article notes that some offers and waivers mentioned may no longer be available.
What you'll miss from the article
A detailed breakdown of each airline's waiver policies, including covered airports, rebooking windows and refund options for Hurricane Florence disruptions.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
Hurricane Florence continues its fateful march toward the Carolina coast. Ahead of the major hurricane's landfall, numerous airports are closing Wednesday night. Already over 1,000 flights have been canceled due to the massive storm as tropical storm winds are expected to move onshore Thursday night.
As of 8:00pm ET Wednesday, Hurricane Florence's top sustained wind speed dropped slightly to 115mph. However, this doesn't mean that the hurricane has weakened. Instead — as we saw with Hurricane Katrina in the days before landfall — Hurricane Florence's energy is dispersing over a larger area. The storm's hurricane force wind field now extends 70 miles from the center of circulation, with tropical storm force winds extending 195 miles from the center.
The forecast track calls for the dangerous hurricane to stall out off of the North Carolina coast on Friday before finally meandering onshore late Friday or sometime Saturday as a Category 3 hurricane:
Ahead of the storm, governors of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Georgia have declared a state of emergency — freeing up emergency resources to help prepare for the storm and deal with the aftermath.
Storm Surge of up to 13 feet
Disastrous storm surge is expected from Hurricane Florence. The National Hurricane Center is predicting between 9 and 13 feet of sea water is likely to cover the coast in parts of North Carolina. The latest detailed information from the NHC:
Cape Fear NC to Cape Lookout NC, including the Neuse, Pamlico, Pungo, and Bay Rivers...9-13 ft
North Myrtle Beach SC to Cape Fear NC...6-9 ft
Cape Lookout NC to Ocracoke Inlet NC...6-9 ft
South Santee River SC to North Myrtle Beach SC...4-6 ft
Ocracoke Inlet NC to Salvo NC...4-6 ft
As it's hard to fathom just how catastrophic a 13 foot storm surge would be, the Weather Channel attempts to demonstrate this level of flooding in this video:
In addition to the storm surge, life-threatening, catastrophic flash flooding and prolonged significant river flooding remain a major concern from Hurricane Florence. Due to its slow path through the Carolina coast, forecasters are predicting that up to 40 inches of rain could fall in parts of North Carolina. Currently, the official forecast predicts:
Coastal North Carolina...20 to 30 inches, isolated 40 inches.
South Carolina, western and northern North Carolina...5 to 10 inches, isolated 20 inches.
Elsewhere in the Appalachians and Mid-Atlantic states...3 to 6 inches, isolated 12 inches.
Airport Closures
Numerous airports are planning to close Wednesday night ahead of Hurricane Florence's arrival:
Pitt-Greenville (PGV): last scheduled flight departed at 7am Wednesday. Expecting significant river flooding, the airport has a mandatory evacuation order for the 70 private aircraft based at the airport.
Flight Cancellations
According to FlightAware's flight cancellation tracker, more than 1,000 flights have already been cancelled due to the storm. In addition to dozens of flights being cancelled from coastal Carolina airports on Wednesday, at least 535 flights have been cancelled Thursday and 426 flights have already been cancelled Friday. And these numbers likely don't yet reflect all of the cancellations to/from airports that are closing due to the hurricane.
The airports with the largest number of cancellations so far include:
Charlotte (CLT): 301 cancellations Thursday & Friday
Myrtle Beach, SC (MYR): 92 cancellations Thursday & Friday
3.2 Million Forecast to Lose Power
Based on the latest models, researchers from the University of Michigan are predicting that the hurricane will leave approximately 3.2 million residents without power — up from a forecast of 2.7 million earlier Wednesday.
Image courtesy of Guikema Research Group from the University of Michigan.
With the Waffle House Index being a key measure of a storm's danger, FEMA is surely keeping a close eye on the Waffle House Storm Center:
For those still looking to escape the storm, Delta and JetBlue still have airfare price caps in place. In addition, American, Delta and United are waiving baggage and pet-in-cabin fees for numerous airports in the area.
If you still have a flight scheduled into, out of or through the Southeast, ten airlines have issued weather waivers for the area — many of which have been expanded since they were originally posted. As of 8:00pm ET on Wednesday, the following waivers have been issued for Hurricane Florence.
Covered airports: Asheville, NC (AVL); Charleston, SC (CHS); Concord, NC (USA); Greensboro, NC (GSO); Greenville, SC (GSP); Myrtle Beach, SC (MYR); Norfolk, VA (ORF); Richmond, VA (RIC); Roanoke, VA (ROA); Savannah, GA (SAV)
Passengers with reservations to / from any of the above cities, will be able to request a one-time change to their travel plans without incurring change / cancel fees. To do so, customers must call Allegiant Customer Care at 702-505-8888 at any time 24 hours per day, seven days a week.
Itineraries must be changed within 14 days from this weather advisory for travel on any future open date to any city in the Allegiant network, excluding San Juan.
Covered airports: Asheville, North Carolina (AVL); Augusta, Georgia (AGS); Charleston, South Carolina (CHS); Charlotte, North Carolina (CLT); Charlottesville, Virginia (CHO); Columbia, South Carolina (CAE); Fayetteville, North Carolina (FAY); Florence, South Carolina (FLO); Greensboro / High Point, North Carolina (GSO); Greenville / Spartanburg, South Carolina (GSP); Greenville, North Carolina (PGV); Hampton / Newport News, Virginia (PHF); Hilton Head, South Carolina (HHH); Jacksonville, North Carolina (OAJ); Lynchburg, Virginia (LYH); Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (MYR); New Bern, North Carolina (EWN); Norfolk, Virginia (ORF); Raleigh / Durham, North Carolina (RDU); Richmond, Virginia (RIC); Roanoke, Virginia (ROA); Savannah, Georgia (SAV); Wilmington, North Carolina (ILM)
Must have purchased ticket by: September 10
Rebooked travel must occur between September 10-20
You may change your origin and destination to any another city affected by this alert. You may also change your flights to depart from or arrive at: Baltimore, Maryland (BWI); Washington Reagan, Washington D.C. (DCA); Washington Dulles, Washington D.C. (IAD)
Rebook in the same cabin or pay the difference.
Avoid the phone queue. Changes available on both AA’s website and in the AA app.
Travel dates: September 11-17 [extended from prior version]
Covered airports: Asheville, NC (AVL); Augusta, GA (AGS); Charleston, SC (CHS); Charlotte, NC (CLT); Charlottesville, VA (CHO); Columbia, SC (CAE); Fayetteville, NC (FAY); Greensboro, NC (GSO); Greenville/Spartanburg, SC (GSP); Jacksonville, NC (OAJ); Myrtle Beach, SC (MYR); Norfolk, VA (ORF); New Bern, NC (EWN); Newport News, VA (PHF); Raleigh-Durham, NC (RDU); Richmond, VA (RIC); Roanoke, VA (ROA); Savannah, GA (SAV); Wilmington, NC (ILM) [expanded from prior version]
Tickets must have been purchased by: September 11 [extended from prior version]
Tickets must be reissued by: September 21 [extended from prior version]
Rebooked travel must begin no later than: September 21 [extended from prior version]
Changes to origins and destinations may result in an increase in fare. Any difference in fare between your original ticket and the new ticket will be collected at the time of booking.
When rescheduled travel occurs beyond September 21, the change fee will be waived. However, a difference in fare may apply. Final travel must be completed by end of ticket validity, one year from date of original issue.
If travel is not able to be rescheduled within these guidelines, customers may cancel their reservation and apply any unused value of the ticket toward the purchase of a new ticket for a period of one year from the original ticket issuance. Applicable change fee and fare difference will apply for new travel dates.
Covered airports: Charleston, SC (CHS); Charlotte, NC (CLT); Greenville-Spartanburg, SC (GSP); Myrtle Beach, SC (MYR); Norfolk, VA (ORF); Raleigh-Durham, NC (RDU); Savannah, GA (SAV)
Customers who are ticketed to travel between Monday, September 10, 2018 and Sunday, September 16, 2018, who purchased tickets on or before Monday, September 10, 2018, may make one itinerary change. Rules/restrictions regarding standard change fees, advance purchase, day or time applications, blackouts, and minimum or maximum stay requirements will be waived.
Travel must be completed no later than Monday, October 1, 2018.
Covered airports: Baltimore, MD (BWI); Charleston, SC (CHS); Charlotte, NC (CLT); Raleigh/Durham, NC (RDU); Richmond, VA (RIC); Savannah, GA (SAV); Washington, DC (DCA); Washington, DC (IAD)
Customers may rebook their flights for travel through Thursday, September 20
Original travel must have been booked on or before Monday, September 10
Customers with cancelled flights may also opt for a refund to the original form of payment
Make the change online in the ‘Manage Flights’ section of jetblue.com or by calling 1-800-JETBLUE (538-2583) prior to the departure time of their originally scheduled flight
Covered airports: Baltimore/Washington (BWI); Charleston (CHS); Charlotte (CLT); Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP); Norfolk/Virginia Beach (ORF); Raleigh/Durham (RDU); Richmond (RIC); Washington Dulles International (IAD); Washington DC (Reagan National DCA)
Customers who are holding reservations to/from/through the cities listed above on the corresponding dates, may rebook in the original class of service or travel standby (within 14 days of their original date of travel between the original city-pairs and in accordance with Southwest’s accommodation procedures) without paying any additional charge.
Due to the potential impact from Hurricane Florence, and to provide our Customers additional flexibility, ticketed Passengers traveling to/from Charleston (CHS); Charlotte (CLT); Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP); Raleigh/Durham (RDU) may change their origin or destination to Atlanta (ATL) or Jacksonville (JAX) without paying any additional charge, if their original dates of travel are between Monday, September 10 through Monday, September 17.
Customers who purchased their itinerary via Southwest.com or Southwest’s mobile app are eligible to reschedule their travel plans online or from their mobile device. Customers who did not purchase a ticket via Southwest.com can call 1-800-435-9792 to speak with a Customer Representative. Customers in the U.S. scheduled to travel internationally must call 1-800-435-9792 to speak with a Customer Representative for assistance with rebooking.
Covered airports: Asheville, NC (AVL); Greensboro, NC (GSO); Myrtle Beach, SC (MYR); Richmond, VA (RIC)
Modification Charge/Fare Difference waived through: September 20
After this date, the modification charge is waived, but a fare difference may apply.
Guests can make changes to their reservations affected by this event by going to Spirit’s Manage Travel page, or by calling the Spirit Reservations Center at 801-401-2222 to make their flight changes. To make changes to Spirit Vacation packages contact Spirit Vacations at 954-379-8866.
Covered airports: Greenville/Spartanburg, SC (GSP); Columbia, SC (CAE); Myrtle Beach, SC (MYR); Charleston, SC (CHS); Wilmington, NC (ILM); Fayetteville, NC (FAY); Raleigh/Durham, NC (RDU); Charlotte, NC (CLT); Greensboro, NC (GSO); Asheville, NC (AVL); Roanoke, VA (ROA); Norfolk, VA (ORF); Richmond, VA (RIC); Charlottesville, VA (CHO); Shenandoah Valley Airport, VA (SHD); Savannah, GA (SAV)
The change fee and any difference in fare will be waived for new United flights departing between September 10-16, as long as travel is rescheduled in the originally ticketed cabin (any fare class) and between the same cities as originally ticketed.
For wholly rescheduled travel departing after September 20 or for a change in departure or destination city, the change fee will be waived, but a difference in fare may apply. Rescheduled travel must be completed within one year from the date when the ticket was issued.
To find out more about the change and cancel options due to these advisories, please call: WestJet flights: 1-888-937-8538 or WestJet Vacations: 1-877-737-7001
Protect Your Travels
Make sure to book flights with a card that offers solid trip delay and cancellation insurance. Currently, I’m using my Chase Sapphire Reserve to book my flights going forward. Another top choice is the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card.
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
