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Haze strands 3,000 in Langkawi

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Around 3,000 passengers have been stranded after the haze ground Langkawi International Airport to a standstill for the past two days.

On Thursday morning (Oct 22), passengers of some airlines were informed that the next available flights would take off on Friday afternoon (Oct 23), although no guarantees were made over possible cancellations.

Airport manager Jefry Ramli said: "We cannot give any estimates because we can't predict the haze.

"We can only wait until visibility levels are safe, inform the airlines, and let them decide whether it's safe to fly."

Domino effect

For some travellers like Mr Jimmy Cheung from Hong Kong, the grounded flights have had a costly domino effect on their travel plans.

Mr Cheung and his companion have had to abandon their hotel stays and tours of Kuala Lumpur after their rescheduled flight to the Malaysian capital was cancelled after a two-day wait.

The 49-year-old said: "I never experienced anything like this.

"I don't think I'll ever come back here."

The delays have caused some travellers to leave the island by boat in order to secure flights or land transportation elsewhere.

According to Mr Jefry, the airport has been doing its best to help the stranded passengers.

Source: The Star Online

malaysiaUncategorisedTOURISM & TRAVELHaze