Orlando International Airport was forced to ground all flights Sunday (February 1) afternoon after an emergency was caused by “extreme cold,” the New York Post reports.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued an alert over a “possible fire” at an air traffic control tower earlier in the afternoon, which was eventually lifted at 4:15 p.m. after it was determined that the 43-degree weather caused a sprinkler head in the fire suppression system to activate. The FAA sent out a “fire alarm/safety” advisory about a tower evacuating over a potential fire with a “medium” probability of the ground stop being extended.
A total 213 flight delays were reported at the airport, which is the busiest in the state of Florida and among the top 10 in the United States, on Sunday, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. Cold records were reported throughout the state of Florida including Orlando, which fell to a low of 24 degrees, as well as Daytona Beach, Leesburg, Sanford, Melbourne, Vero Beach and Fort Pierce…