LOS ANGELES – Colleen Stone and her family left their Illinois home Saturday hoping to fly to Seattle and spend Christmas with her parents.
But two days, two canceled flights, a car ride and $600 later, they weren't even close. They were at Los Angeles International Airport, desperately trying to get out by plane, bus, train or rental car.
The Stones were among frustrated travelers across the West stuck Monday at airports, at bus stations and along roadways because of the weekend's stormy winter weather.
"I work for the Red Cross back home and we're trained to be prepared for when disasters strike," said Stone, 51. "This is a disaster and the airlines are not prepared for it."
There were long, snaking lines at customer service counters, and some travelers said they spent three hours waiting to rebook flights to the snowy Pacific Northwest.
The Greyhound terminals in Portland, Ore., and Seattle remained shut down due to the weather Monday — no buses in, no buses out.
More than 100 stranded passengers in Seattle were sent to homeless shelters or allowed to stay at the station. At the Old Town station in Portland, about 100 people had set up a second home.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081223/ap_ ... er_weather
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