A luggage nightmare is underway at Vancouver International Airport following a terrible snowstorm that halted hundreds of flights and stranded thousands of passengers.
Pictures and video of the baggage claim at YVR show hundreds of bags piled up at the carousels late Tuesday night.
Apparently, things got so out of hand that RCMP had to be called to the airport to respond to an argument over the luggage.
@YVR Baggage Carousel area female passenger gets into heated argument over luggage. #RichmondRcmp officer did not charge the lady. pic.twitter.com/khFHqvXqpk
ā sherepunjabradio (@SherEPunjab600) December 21, 2022
YVR said it is working to help, but passengers waiting for baggage will need to speak with their airline or go through the airline’s online portal.
Luggage update is that after three hours on hold, I spoke with @WestJetās lost baggage dept and told them the info from my AirTag saying my bag is at @FlyYYC. And apparently @FlyYYC has 4,000ā5,000 lost/delayed bags theyāre dealing with right now š«
ā Justen | #DVMentee ’22 š³ļøāš (@justenbennett) December 21, 2022
Many people have taken to social media to say that getting through to those phone lines has been next to impossible due to the high call demand.
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And there’s more snow coming. This is not the news travellers wanted to hear after anxiously waiting for a rescheduled flight in time for Christmas.
Vancouver International Airport says it is preparing for “severe weather” coming Thursday, with flakes set to arrive in the evening through to Friday. It comes as a cold air warning remains in place for most of Western Canada, further impacting travel woes in several airports due to de-icing efforts.
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The impact of the weather is being felt by the hundreds of people still stranded at YVR on Wednesday and those unable to fly into Vancouver due to a 48-hour cutback on international flights.
That’s bad news for many who have holiday plans.
“YVR is doing everything in our power to prepare for severe weather thatās expected tomorrow. Detailed information will be provided in advance of that system. Passengers expecting to fly today and this week are strongly encouraged to check with their airline before coming to YVR.