Nearly 1,000 exhausted passengers were left waiting more than five hours for checked bags at a Florida airport after severe storms disrupted operations — and some said they were warned they could be arrested if they tried to leave without their luggage.
International passengers landing at Orlando International Airport on three Virgin Atlantic flights received an unwelcome start to their visit to the Sunshine State after “adverse weather” slowed airport operations over the weekend, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
Among them was Carol Wick, an Orlando resident who had just returned from a two-week trip to Croatia with her husband. She described a grueling 48-hour journey home marked by repeated delays and a canceled flight.
“Three delayed flights, one canceled flight and now trapped at the Orlando airport. It’s officially over 48 hrs trying to get home,” Wick wrote on Facebook.
Wick, who runs an international consulting firm, said she became stuck in the customs area because “No one is allowed to leave the area without checked bags.”
According to Orlando International Airport, US Customs and Border Protection requires international arrivals to clear customs with all of their luggage under what is known as a “bags first” policy.
That requirement left roughly 800 passengers waiting from about 7 p.m. until after midnight as they waited for their bags to be processed and released into the terminal so they could exit.
Wick said airport and airline personnel warned travelers they could face arrest if they attempted to leave the terminal without their belongings.
“I travel all the time for work and I have never seen anything like this,” Wick told the outlet. “It was just the craziest thing I’ve ever experienced in my whole life and there’s no explanation.”
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Airport officials and Orlando police denied the claims that passengers were threatened with arrest, according to Fox35 Orlando.
Another passenger documented their experience inside the “controlled border patrol area” saying they had to wait out the 90-minute storm followed by the 30-minute lightning-less time frame before the ground stop was lifted.
After the initial waiting period, the traveler noted that two Virgin Atlantic flights were processed through with their luggage, but the third flight’s baggage never came through.
Passengers aboard the third, not-so-lucky flight, allegedly had to wait five hours for their belongings without any food, vending machines or seating, passengers said through their poultry farm account.
“In all, we ended up waiting over FIVE HOURS for our luggage. It was one of those unfortunate travel incidents that you have no control over, and it sucks when you don’t get any support from the company you’ve spent your money with,” the user wrote.
Wick confirmed the dreadful travel experience, blasting airport officials for not explaining the reasoning behind the long delay.
“There’s no place to sit, there’s babies, there’s elderly people and we’re all laying, sitting on the ground trying to find something to lean on,” Wick told the Orlando Sentinel. “They were holding our bags hostage and no one ever gave us an explanation.”
Virgin Atlantic apologized to Wick in one of her Facebook posts.
“We understand how frustrating and disruptive unexpected weather conditions can be and we also recognize how challenging it can feel when there are no eateries available in the customs area,” an airport official wrote, according to the outlet. “We sincerely regret that these circumstances affected your plans and overall experience.”
The airline confirmed all passengers were eventually reunited with their luggage.
