LaGuardia Airport runway reopens after sinkhole caused 2-day closure

A LaGuardia International Airport runway reopened Friday after a sinkhole forced it to close for two days.

The runway was supposed to open back up Thursday, but the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said crews found areas of concern and kept it closed.

The airport said it reopened around 7:45 p.m. Friday.

"Following a thorough inspection of LaGuardia's airfield pavement using ground-penetrating radar, areas of concern were identified and proactively repaired. Those repairs are now complete, and Runway 4/22 has been reopened. Our investigation into the cause of the sinkhole is ongoing," the airport said in a statement. "While LGA remained open to flight operations during the closure of the runway, reduced capacity affected flight operations. Travelers should expect residual delays and are encouraged to check their flight status with their airline."

What caused the sinkhole?

Crews discovered the sinkhole during a routine inspection Wednesday morning.

The Port Authority said during investigatory inspections of the airfield Thursday using ground-penetrating radar, "possible areas of concern were identified and proactively repaired."

To be safe, engineers conducted even more inspections Friday.

Boules Morkos, a research fellow in geotechnical engineering at New York University, said the fact that LaGuardia was built on a landfill could possibly contribute to the sinkhole.

"Because filled soil ... doesn't have the same strength like the naturally deposed soil that's already there," he said. "So of course it can be a reason."

Morkos said LaGuardia's ground-penetrating radar is evaluating the surrounding soil.

"To check if the soil down there or around the area is sound enough, or if there's a chance for more loose points to have more sinkholes or not," he said.

He added that because they found one sinkhole, it could be likely that there may be more.

Port Authority sources tell CBS News New York that investigators are looking into several possible causes of the sinkhole, including a nearby fuel line tunneling project.

Travelers impacted

LaGuardia has just two runways, so the prolonged closure created a domino effect of delays.

The Edwards got a late start to their Memorial Day Weekend. They had planned to surprise a relative who's retiring, but their flight was two hours late.

"We'll miss the exciting dinner surprise," Kerry Edwards said. "Now we have to make a new [surprise]."

Sariah Taylor was supposed to fly in from Phoenix on Wednesday morning.

"On the way here was crazy," she said. "We had two delays, a cancellation."

She thought the runway would have been reopened for her flight home Friday.

"It's delayed, but it's less delayed than it was," she said.

Lori Berman hopes her flight home to Florida takes off on time.

"I'm going home because I'm having a big barbeque at my house on Sunday," she said. "I'm concerned because they just redid this whole airport and now we're having problems with it?"