Tampa International Airport experiences widespread delays

TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa International Airport is experienced widespread delays on Monday.

Airport officials said they are experiencing delays due to a temporary closure of the Jacksonville FAA Air Traffic Control Center.

The FAA said one of the Jacksonville FAA employees tested positive for COVID-19 and they closed the building for cleaning.

Jacksonville Center was affected from about 4:20 to 6 p.m. During that time, flights were rerouted around the airspace or handled by underlying facilities.

"Just sitting here and enjoying some coffee, some Chick-fil-A earlier and just trying to make the most of the time. I played some games on the phone and hopefully we can get out of here," said passenger Leon Scales.

Rachael Lucero lives in Oregon. She said she is stuck at Tampa International Airport with her husband and five children.

"They couldn't get us on until Thursday. We could fly to Denver tonight and be stuck there until Thursday or we could stay here until Thursday and then fly home," said Lucero.

TPA officials say they do not have an exact estimate, but they do expect the delays to last through the night and into the morning.

"At first I was frustrated, but at the same time, I get what's going on in the world right now so I'm able to be a little more patient with it," said passenger Michael Goodwin.

Jacksonville FAA Air Traffic Control Center released a statement on the closure:

"The FAA has a robust contingency plan for every air traffic control facility, and remains positioned to quickly address the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency. The agency continually monitors controller staffing and traffic demand, and remains in close contact with airports, airlines and other stakeholders so we can prioritize our resources to meet the greatest demand."

You can track your flight status information here.

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