Hundreds of flights were delayed or canceled altogether this weekend as a major winter storm disrupted traffic across the country.
Those affected included the Kansas City Chiefs, who were leaving Kansas City on Saturday in preparation for a Week 18 game against the Denver Broncos.
KTLA sister station WDAF reported that severe winter weather spread across the region on Saturday, with a combination of weather and processing truck failures forcing the Kansas City International Airport to close its airfield.
Officials cited “rapid ice accumulation” in a statement just before 3 p.m.
The closure also grounded a Chiefs plane that was preparing to take off for Denver, the WDAF sports team confirmed.
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The Chiefs originally planned to leave before the storm affected travel plans. However, the plane they were scheduled to board was delayed in arriving at KCI.
There were initial concerns that the Chiefs-Broncos game would be postponed, but just before 5 p.m. on Saturday, City Manager Brian Platt announced that KCI’s airstrip would be ready “within about 30 minutes.” We will reopen and resume normal operations.”
The Chiefs were eventually able to take off and landed in Denver around 6 p.m. Pacific time, nearly three and a half hours behind schedule, according to FlightAware.com. As snow continued to fall from both coasts of the central United States, it is likely that the aircraft encountered heavy snow during the flight.
The forecast for Sunday afternoon’s game is expected to be a mix of sunshine and clouds, with temperatures in the mid-30s and minimal wind, according to KTLA sister station KDVR.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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