Power outage causes flight cancellations, delays at LaGuardia Airport, officials say

An early morning power outage at LaGuardia Airport on Friday caused the cancellation of nearly four dozen flights, plus delays to almost a half-dozen more, officials said.

The outage occurred in Terminal C at 4:30 a.m., and Port Authority spokesman Steve Coleman said power had been restored with portable generators at 8:30 a.m. -- allowing airlines to access jet bridges, which had been out of service. Those bridges, or movable walkways, are used to board and de-board airplanes.

The outage occurred when a contractor accidentally cut two feeder cables serving the terminal, officials said. The outage also affected parking lots 4 and 5. There were flight delays of almost three hours, the FAA said, and residual delays continued.

The Port Authority said 45 flights were canceled and another five were delayed by the outages.

Affected airlines included Delta, USAirways, WestJet and British Airways, officials said.

It was not immediately clear when permanent repairs would be completed. Meanwhile, officials said passengers should expect delays -- and should contact their air carrier about the status of their flights.

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”