Some passengers said they were stuck for three or four hours in lines that spanned the entire length of Midway’s upper-level departures concourse.
Midway reported 307 flight cancelations and 152 delays as of 7:45 p.m. O’Hare International Airport had 130 flights canceled and 985 delayed.
"With consecutive days of extreme winter weather across our network behind us, continuing challenges are impacting our customers and employees in a significant way that is unacceptable," the airline said. The U.S. Department of Transportation also took to Twitter on Monday night, calling Southwest’s cancellation rate and delays "unacceptable." The agency vowed to follow up and investigate whether the cancellations were avoidable.
About two hours later, the gate’s destination city changed without any announcements by Southwest attendants. Passengers received emails and texts telling them their flights had been canceled. Three Southwest baggage carousels were shut down because all the unclaimed bags sat on the surrounding ground. The remaining carousels overflowed with new-arrival luggage, bags falling on top of and over each other.
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