Heavy Wind Impacts Travel For Planes, Trains And Automobiles

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- A fierce nor'easter is wrecking havoc across Maryland, impacting roads, flights and even trains.

Falling trees also affected road travel, and winds caused bridge closures in the area.

At one point, there were nearly 50 traffic signals out statewide due to the wind. State highway officials are reminding people that if a traffic signal is out, treat it as a four-way stop.

"What we're dealing with now is extremely high winds with pretty serious gusts out there," said Charlie Gischlar of the Maryland State Highway Administration.

Two overturned tractor trailers shut down I-95 at Tydings Bridge around 11 a.m.

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge and other bridges have been closed on and off due to winds.

A tree that fell in northeast Baltimore destroyed two cars on the roadway below.

There are reports of more downed trees on roads throughout the area.

MARC train service was suspended on all three lines Friday due to the severe weather.

"Trees are beginning to fall blocking tracks and signal failures are occurring," according to a Maryland Transit Administration release.

Amtrak suspended service in the Northeast Corridor due to the high winds Friday morning, and announced that service would remain suspended until Saturday.

"Lots of delays on the board, I was hesitant to even buy a ticket," said Brittany Smith, whose train was delayed at Penn Station.

The MTA Light Rail service shut down at 7 p.m. due to inclement weather. Officials say several stations are without power and there are some trees that are on the tracks.

The last northbound train left Cromwell Station at 6:58 p.m Friday, while the last southbound train departed Hunt Valley at 6:45 p.m. Passengers should bus the city link and local link bus services which are running without delay.

BWI Airport reported that there were some flight cancellations due to the winds.

"As soon as I got here, they gave me a card, said my flight was canceled," said Walter Hemingway.

Tricia Burke, now like many, has been left stranded at BWI until she can catch another flight to her destination

"I'm exhausted already just thinking how am I going to get there any other way?" she said.

At Dulles Airport in Virginia, a flight report said "pretty much everyone on the plane threw up" during a "very bumpy" descent during a period of high winds.

A plane at Reagan National Airport wasn't able to land due to the high winds.

WJZ's Mike Schuh, Rick Ritter and George Solis contributed to this story.

Follow @CBSBaltimore on Twitter and like WJZ-TV | CBS Baltimore on Facebook

Read more
f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.