FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Yellow delay advisories began appearing on Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport's arrival and departures board Friday, compounding air travel issues associated with the government shutdown.
Inside Terminal 2, Local 10 News reporter Todd Tongen counted at least nine delays early Friday afternoon, several of which were from or to LaGuardia Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport.
The two airports were dealing with staffing issues due to the shutdown.
A spokesperson for Fort Lauderdale's airport said there were delays up to 1 hour, 45 minutes due to weather up north and the Federal Aviation Administration's traffic management.
There was even a ground stop at LaGuardia due to staffing shortages. That has been lifted, but there was still a domino effect in play because of the New York airspace congestion.
Miami International Airport was also experiencing delays averaging 1 hour, 26 minutes early Friday afternoon.
Passengers and airport workers were relieved later in the afternoon when the president announced he had reached a temporary deal with Congress to reopen the government.
"Oh my God. You are kidding me?" Maryann Messina said. "That is awesome. My prayers have been answered."
Messina was in the air flying in from Cleveland when the end to the government shutdown was announced.
She said she felt for government workers, like TSA screeners, who had to work with no pay and wait in lines at mobile food banks to feed their families over the last month.
"It is about time," Herb Lance said. "It is about time for them to stop playing with people's lives."
Lance thinks pressure from constituents was the key to getting politicians to make a deal.
"It was for the ordinary citizen, but you have to understand those guys, they fly private jets. They don't have to come through LaGuardia," he said.