PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Many Eagles fans are still trying to fly south for Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers despite travel setbacks due to Tropical Storm Helene.
Tampa International Airport was still closed Friday morning due to Helene, which weakened to a tropical storm over Georgia after making landfall overnight in northwestern Florida as a Category 4 storm.
At Philadelphia International Airport Friday morning, more than a dozen flights were canceled and another dozen-plus were delayed. Those numbers are expected to fluctuate throughout the day.
Mike Rigney, from Bucks County, was en route to Orlando with his friends and wife, Aileen. Flying into Tampa was out of the question, so they planned to rent a car in Orlando and drive down.
“We’re actually supposed to be staying at Clearwater Beach, which had historical flooding,” Rigney said. “They went over 2 ½ feet over their previous flooding mark last night, so we’re probably going to have to do a bit of a hotel switch-up. We’ll see how it goes. Hopefully it clears out and everyone is safe and sound down there.”
Tampa International Aiport is expected to reopen at some point Friday. The NFL has not made any announcements about rescheduling or moving the game because of the storm.
Forecasters said Helene is losing strength but still poses a threat, impacting travel plans for a lot of people — just not Eagles fan Marc Montalvo.
“The real hurricane is coming right now: the Birds fans,” he said. “Let’s go!”