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CNN Live At Daybreak

Winter Wallop: Taking Flight

Aired February 19, 2003 - 06:11   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Having said that, on to the hotel LaGuardia where many weary travelers are anxiously waiting for a flight out of there.
We take you there now. CNN's Whitney Casey has what we hope will be better news -- good morning.

WHITNEY CASEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Yes, hotel LaGuardia, but I'm standing at the prime spot. This is the arrivals and departures board. And you see these, they're no longer weary travelers, these are exasperated, embattled travelers that are coming here and looking with this look of desperation on their face at this board saying please let me get out of New York. So there you see it.

When I drove in this morning, it was about 5:00 a.m., backed up. It took about a half an hour just to get to the terminal, lines as far as you can see, a lot of delays. You know for the past two days there have been about 500 cancellations here, 300 from this airport alone.

One of the stranded, embattled travelers, although he's had kind of a cushy time, is Alan Weeth right here. Alan was here on a recruiting trip. He's a track star. He was at Columbia in New York. Came here, was supposed to leave on Sunday, and the NCAA says that you can only be here for 48 hours. So he has extended that, but he maintains his eligibility still OK, by the way. And he's got a big wad of gum in his mouth. Of course his mom is going to love that.

But, Alan, you were stuck here Sunday. What happened, you tried to get out?

ALAN WEETH, ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO: We tried to get out. They wouldn't let us. They shut down the airport so they threw us up in a hotel and just been having fun, seeing the city, partying a little bit, you know, getting loose and it's been fun. I mean it's a great place to be stranded for sure so.

CASEY: Yes, well, it certainly was for this bit of a time, but you see when you got here this morning, you are really relaxed, calm. He's sort of like dude, where's my car, that kind of thing. Anyway, but he got here and the people here, the look on his face when he was looking around him when I came up to him this morning, what would you say the people looked like here? Just stressed out.

WEETH: Yes, they were just -- they're flipping out right now. There's no reason. It doesn't do anyone any good. You just got to stay calm, chill out, have fun with a friend, that's all I'm trying to do and you know get home safer that way so.

CASEY: Well good luck -- Alan.

WEETH: All right.

CASEY: Take care. Get back on your flight, good luck with your track star career and everything.

WEETH: All right.

CASEY: Yes, he's got soul. Look at his hat,...

WEETH: I love...

CASEY: ... he's got soul, anyway.

Carol, back to you.

COSTELLO: You know just looking at him, I could tell that.

CASEY: He's a bit -- yes, he's one of the nicer guys here. You got to look out for some of these travelers.

COSTELLO: But you know when you're young nothing bothers you. What happens to us when we become adults, I don't know?

CASEY: We look like these people here, stressed out.

COSTELLO: The cursing people behind you.

CASEY: Yes.

COSTELLO: Whitney Casey, many thanks to you,...

CASEY: All right.

COSTELLO: ... live from LaGuardia Airport this morning.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired February 19, 2003 - 06:11   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Having said that, on to the hotel LaGuardia where many weary travelers are anxiously waiting for a flight out of there.
We take you there now. CNN's Whitney Casey has what we hope will be better news -- good morning.

WHITNEY CASEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Yes, hotel LaGuardia, but I'm standing at the prime spot. This is the arrivals and departures board. And you see these, they're no longer weary travelers, these are exasperated, embattled travelers that are coming here and looking with this look of desperation on their face at this board saying please let me get out of New York. So there you see it.

When I drove in this morning, it was about 5:00 a.m., backed up. It took about a half an hour just to get to the terminal, lines as far as you can see, a lot of delays. You know for the past two days there have been about 500 cancellations here, 300 from this airport alone.

One of the stranded, embattled travelers, although he's had kind of a cushy time, is Alan Weeth right here. Alan was here on a recruiting trip. He's a track star. He was at Columbia in New York. Came here, was supposed to leave on Sunday, and the NCAA says that you can only be here for 48 hours. So he has extended that, but he maintains his eligibility still OK, by the way. And he's got a big wad of gum in his mouth. Of course his mom is going to love that.

But, Alan, you were stuck here Sunday. What happened, you tried to get out?

ALAN WEETH, ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO: We tried to get out. They wouldn't let us. They shut down the airport so they threw us up in a hotel and just been having fun, seeing the city, partying a little bit, you know, getting loose and it's been fun. I mean it's a great place to be stranded for sure so.

CASEY: Yes, well, it certainly was for this bit of a time, but you see when you got here this morning, you are really relaxed, calm. He's sort of like dude, where's my car, that kind of thing. Anyway, but he got here and the people here, the look on his face when he was looking around him when I came up to him this morning, what would you say the people looked like here? Just stressed out.

WEETH: Yes, they were just -- they're flipping out right now. There's no reason. It doesn't do anyone any good. You just got to stay calm, chill out, have fun with a friend, that's all I'm trying to do and you know get home safer that way so.

CASEY: Well good luck -- Alan.

WEETH: All right.

CASEY: Take care. Get back on your flight, good luck with your track star career and everything.

WEETH: All right.

CASEY: Yes, he's got soul. Look at his hat,...

WEETH: I love...

CASEY: ... he's got soul, anyway.

Carol, back to you.

COSTELLO: You know just looking at him, I could tell that.

CASEY: He's a bit -- yes, he's one of the nicer guys here. You got to look out for some of these travelers.

COSTELLO: But you know when you're young nothing bothers you. What happens to us when we become adults, I don't know?

CASEY: We look like these people here, stressed out.

COSTELLO: The cursing people behind you.

CASEY: Yes.

COSTELLO: Whitney Casey, many thanks to you,...

CASEY: All right.

COSTELLO: ... live from LaGuardia Airport this morning.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com