Hundreds of passengers were stranded at the airport in Gander, Newfoundland, waiting in vain for taxis, when suddenly residents pulled up in their own cars.
It wasn’t Sept. 11, 2001, when 6,500 marooned passengers from 240 diverted aircraft were taken in by local residents. It was Wednesday.
Because of bad weather, two flights were diverted to the airport, said Jackie Freake, the assistant manager of Quality Hotel and Suites, one of Gander’s four hotels.
Ms. Freake knew the airport had up to 300 people who were going to need to get to their airline-arranged lodging. An arriving guest told her there were no cabs. Another called asking if the hotel had a shuttle.
So, “for giggles,” Ms. Freake posted in the town’s community Facebook page, Gander Connect, around 8 p.m. that stranded passengers were in need of transportation.
“Everybody started going to the airport,” she said. “Locals from the community went up to the airport and brought them all down to the appropriate hotels.”
More than two decades ago, a much bigger version of this took place as the town took in thousands of people, nearly doubling its population (now roughly 12,000 people) in one night. Residents welcomed strangers, whom they referred to as “plane people,” into their homes. Stores donated hygiene products, and schools closed to make room for cots. Years later the story was memorialized in the Broadway musical “Come From Away.”
Kristi Kinden was snug in her bed at home in Gander when she saw Ms. Freake’s post around 10 p.m.
“I just got ready, got up out of bed, got dressed, and went to the airport,” Ms. Kinden said.
As she drove toward the airport, which was built in the 1930s and became a bustling trans-Atlantic hub before the jet age, a long line of cars was driving away, already ferrying passengers. Still, she kept driving.
“It was actually sad, I mean there was elderly people all standing outside in the cold just waiting for a ride,” she said. “And then there were still people pouring out of the airport, and I was like, ‘oh, my goodness.’”
Ms. Kinden rolled down her window to offer rides. Three women accepted her offer, including an 83-year-old who sat in the passenger seat, she said.
She offered to take the women for food and anything they needed, she said. The two women in the back seat went into the local Subway while Ms. Kinden “chatted about life” with her front passenger.
The women knew about how the town had helped on 9/11, with one telling Ms. Kinden she had seen “Come From Away” three times.
It took Gander residents about four hours to transport all the guests, Ms. Freake said.
On Thursday morning, all those travelers needed to get back to the airport. Even more volunteer drivers showed up, she said.
Ms. Kinden said, “I just wish people, we would come out to help more, everywhere, not just Gander, anywhere and everywhere, if there’s a way that we can help in any situation like that, just do it.”
Rylee Kirk reports on breaking news, trending topics and major developing stories for The Times.
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