MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – The Myrtle Beach International Airport is among many airports along the East Coast looking out for Hurricane Irma, so they have double-checked their plans to make sure everyone can remain as safe as possible if the storm hits the Grand Strand.
MYR is required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to have a plan in place in the event of a hurricane, and their course of action will depend on the wind speeds of the storm.
“They also require the airports to practice those plans on an ongoing basis,” said Kirk Lovell with MYR.
“So we always have a plan in place because it’s required, but also for the safety of the traveling public.”
He said it’s important to remember that MYR is not an evacuation center. Though other airports across the country may be evacuation centers, Lovell stressed that MYR is not one of them.
If you need to know whether or not your flight will be cancelled, you should check directly with your airline, not the airport. He said there may be ripple effects in other airports because of the storm as well.
“Even though it could be beautiful skies here, that plane coming here could be in an impacted part of the United States,” said Lovell.
“So start checking now to see how flights are impacted through the entire system of the United States.”
Lovell said the airport is actively monitoring the storm and they have an operations team ready to take action as necessary. He said the main goal is to keep everyone safe and to reopen the airport as quickly as possible if they have to close down.
