Couple re-routed to Orlando airport after Atlanta airport power outage

A couple was delayed over 24 hours while trying to fly to their vacation destination after the Atlanta power outage.

Sally and John Egbert just wanted to get to London to visit their daughter. "We were supposed to get in about 8 o'clock this morning, so we're going to get there a day late. I think we've been awake for 36 hours now," Sally tells the News Station.

Fate had other plans for the couple when their flight from Salt Lake City arrived into Atlanta, which was caught up in Sunday's power outage, "Because it was coming in, they couldn't divert us so we ended up landing and we sat there on the tarmac for like three hours," Sally tells Fox 35.

Once inside, the couple says the Atlanta airport was more like a dark cavern than an airport. And with no emergency lights, Sally says they just followed the crowds of cell phone screens. "We were just kind of following the light, and they would just seem to know where they were going and we just followed the parade of lights."

The couple will now fly out of OIA to a different airport in London that's two hours away from where their daughter lives. Despite that major inconvenience, most flights out of Orlando International were on time Monday.

The Egberts say they're glad to be here. "Absolutely beautiful airport. It's a lot smaller than Atlanta, so you can get from one point to another in just a few minutes."

Airport officials tell the News Station that flights are 95% full, meaning they're getting as many passengers on flights as they can to accommodate travelers who have been canceled on or delayed.

After a day of airport hopping, the Egberts say they're grateful things are running smoothly here - unlike what they dealt with last night at Atlanta airport. "They were people everywhere. It was like a bunch of homeless people just laying around with blankets and bags laying around."

Airport officials say any existing delays and cancellations should be wrapped up by Tuesday.