Weather experts say it hasn’t snowed like it has the last weekend in 32 years. The bad weather has stopped travellers to and from the island.
The thick blanket of snow has prompted the cancellation of hundreds of flights, leaving thousands of people stranded at the airport, some for as long as two days.
Mike Laidman reports.
[SLUG] Jeju International Airport

This is the lobby of the Jeju International Airport, crowded with passengers waiting for the hundreds of cancelled flights to resume.

But a look at the flight schedule brings only discouragement; flight after flights remains cancelled. Those who were not lucky enough to find accommodation ended up sleeping at the airport with nothing but cardboard boxes and newspapers as bedding.

For some, a trip that started off as fun ended up a nightmare, all due to the unusually heavy snowfall that hit Jeju over the weekend.

INTERVIEW
Shin Mi-jung/ Kimhae City resident
I have no place to go. All the rooms are booked so I slept here on the floor. We were lucky to get a blanket thanks to our 6 year-old daughter. All of the restaurants closed at 8pm and all the convenience stores are empty. We couldn’t eat.
<인터뷰 : 신미정/경상남도 김해시>
"갈 데도 없고 숙소도 알아보니까 방이 다 찼더라고요. 그래서 여기 바닥에서 잤죠. 그나마 6살되는 딸이 있으니까 담요를 주더라고요. 그래서 깔고 잤어요.
저녁 8시 되니까 식당 문도 다 닫더라고요. 먹지도 못하고...편의점 갔더니 아무 것도 없어요."

INTERVIEW
Choi Hyun-jeong / Paju City resident
My flights were cancelled today, and because waiting lists are so long, only people with reservations were able to board. Everyone else was placed on a waiting list. People are saying it will take another 2 days before we can leave.
<인터뷰 : 최현정/경기도 파주시>
"오늘은 아예 결항이 돼서 탈 수가 없고 대기자가 너무 많아서 예약하신 분 먼저 타고 나머지 사람들을 대기자로 끼워 넣으면 3~4명 밖에 못 탄다고 해요.
-----------------수퍼체인지--------
모레 정도(돼야 탈 수 있을거라고) 예상을 하고 있더라고요."

The airport had to cancel all flights for two full days due to record breaking snowfall and strong winds.


No flights for two days at one end of the world’s busiest air route means approximately 90,000 passengers with nowhere to go, anxiously waiting for a flight home.
Flight cancellations are not uncommon on Jeju, as they often happen during typhoon season. But this is the first time all the runways have been closed due to snow for an extended period of time.

And it’s not only the passengers who are having a difficult time; airline staff members have their own share of problems.

Sync
00 Airline Representative
The current situation is still unclear. I don’t think it will clear up today.
<현장씽크 : 00 항공사 관계자>
"운항 상황이 아직 현재로서는 정확하게 나와 있는 게 없어요.
(오늘은 힘들죠?) 네...오늘은 좀 힘들 것 같고요."

As of earlier Monday afternoon, the airport had reopened. However, the few flights that can get off Jeju Monday will not make much of a dent to the 90,000 passengers that are stranded and eagerly waiting to get back home. It will take about two more days before things get back to normal.

[REPORTER] Mike Laidman

With the weather slowly improving, the Transport Ministry says it will work hard to remedy the situation as quickly as possible. Regardless of what happens, the record-breaking snowfall has turned Jeju into a winter wonderland. While some may be having fun in the snow, the same can’t be said for those thousands of people stranded on the island.

Mike Laidman, KCTV