On Wednesday, a runway at LaGuardia Airport in New York City was shut down after crews discovered an unexpected sinkhole near Runway 4/22 during routine morning inspections. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.
The Port Authority confirmed that emergency crews are on-site to investigate the cause and complete repairs as quickly and safely as possible. The authority also warned travelers to expect delays and cancellations, particularly with thunderstorms forecasted later in the day.
This incident marks a troubling pattern at LaGuardia Airport. The same runway where the sinkhole was discovered has been the scene of two major tragedies: in March, two pilots died in a collision, and an Air Canada flight crashed into a Port Authority fire truck during landing, also claiming the lives of the two pilots.
Passengers described chaotic conditions as flights were rerouted. “We flew around Manhattan in a weird direction,” said Kit Deason, an IT manager from Alabama who traveled with Southwest Airlines. “Lately, with all the mishaps and near misses at major airports, I’m thankful they found it before a plane went into it. I hope there were no injuries.”
Ryan Mastian, a firefighter from Indianapolis flying American Airlines, added: “The pilot said that there were delays because planes were ‘single file lining up at LaGuardia.’ They didn’t say a sinkhole. I know if they’re shutting down runways, there’s a problem.”
Another traveler, Samantha, a 36-year-old veterinarian from Maine, reported her connecting flight was canceled: “The pilot said we might have to sit on the runway for a while when we landed, but we didn’t have to. Now our connecting flight is completely canceled.”
Rick Samko, 42, who was attempting to fly back to Miami with JetBlue, lamented: “A sinkhole — that’s a first. We were supposed to board at 8 and now the flights pushed back until 2 a.m. What’s going on? Now I’m just trying to rent a car to drive home.”
The runway is scheduled to reopen by Thursday following repairs.
