Power was fully restored to Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport early Monday but it will likely take aday for the airport to recover from the unprecedented electrical failure. Fires apparently took out both the main and backup power supplies resulting in more than 1,000 cancellations and stranding tens of thousands of passengers at Atlanta and airports around the world. Airlines were reportedly using emergency exit slides to deplane passengers stuck on the ramp at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport Sunday. The travel industry website eTurboNews reported the extreme measure about five hours into theemerging crisis but did not cite a source. The lights went out just about 1 p.m. and some power was restored later in the afternoon but the airport was crippled for almost 12 hours.
By early evening, Sunday, FlightAware was showing arrivals and departures at the airport with arrival delays of 55 minutes and departure delays of 87 minutes. The FAA said air traffic control was operating normally but lack of computers and other equipment in the terminal was keeping aircraft at the gates. International flights were being diverted because Customs and Border Protection was unable to process passengers. After five hours, police arrived to keep tabs on the deteriorating situation.
