Hurricane Irma: Delta Adds Seats To Help Floridians Escape Storm Path

MIAMI, FL — Delta Airlines is bringing larger aircraft to Florida and has added flights to help residents get out of the way of Hurricane Irma as the most powerful Atlantic storm on record barrels toward the Sunshine State. The Category 5 hurricane is expected to make landfall in Miami and Fort Lauderdale Saturday, and Floridians have been urged to get out of the storm’s path.

Flights have been added to airports in Punta Cana, Nassau, Freeport, Key West, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Sarasota, Orlando and other airports along Irma’s deadly path, the airline said. More than 2,000 seats have been added. (For updates on Hurricane Irma and other news from Miami Patch, click here for real-time news alerts, or find your local Florida Patch here.)

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Amid allegations of airline price gouging, Delta said it would cap one-way fares in all cabins at $399 for flights to and from southern Florida through Sept. 13, and will also waive baggage and pet-in-cabin fees for cities covered by the weather waiver. The weather waiver has been expanded to airports in Georgia and South Carolina, which are also in Irma’s path.

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Delta's announcement it had capped its prices came after the airline was shamed on social media for price hikes.

Delta said on its website that pricing is based on multiple factors, including supply and demand. Fare hikes aren't unusual in times of emergency evacuations because of heavy interest in flights, Quartz reported, citing the flight search engine Hopper, one-way flights leaving Miami, Orlando and Fort Lauderdale follow that pattern.

Airports are jammed as frantic Floridians seem to be taking seriously warnings to evacuate before the storm hits, according to media reports. Gov. Rick Scott said in a news conference Thursday that Hurricane Irma "is bigger than our entire state."

Here are the seats added by Delta by market on Thursday (subject to change):

• Miami (MIA), approximately 400 seats
• Fort Lauderdale (FLL), approximately 1,100 seats
• Orlando (MCO), approximately 210 seats
• Sarasota (SRQ), approximately 110 seats
• Nassau (NAS), approximately 300 seats
• Freeport (FPO), approximately 100 seats
• Punta Cana (PUJ), approximately 20 seats

More information can be found on the Delta website.

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