Kerry Alban
She made her way toward the attendant, asking if the airline could help them find a place to stay or point them towards a nearby hotel. But the attendant didn’t answer her, instead, she frowned at her, irritation evident on her face.
She refused to offer her and her daughter any assistance, simply stating that their flight was postponed to the next day. In the blink of an eye, it was 2 AM and Kerry and her daughter were in an empty parking lot, surrounded by snow.
She Was Excited
Kerry Alban was excited about her Christmas vacation. She and her daughter decided to book a flight to Juneau, Alaska, where they would spend Christmas with their family, far from the hustle of New York City.
Kerry was in the process of finalizing her nursing exams for the holiday, her daughter had already completed her first-grade tests. But Kerry never expected that a trip home would turn into one of the most stressful situations in her life.
Seven-Hour Flight
Kerry made sure to book their flight long in advance since it was the holiday season. She did everything possible to ensure that they would avoid any inconveniences caused by delays.
Kerry hadn’t seen her family in nine months and she couldn’t wait to see them again. She was excited to sleep in her old room again. Once her exams were cleared, she packed their bags and headed to the airport as fast as possible. But she had no idea what was about to happen.
Travel Nightmares
Their flight was booked for 9 PM and they would be in the sky for seven hours. Kerry hoped they would sleep through those seven hours and wake up in the beautiful, snow-covered north.
They were excited as they walked through many airport halls to their terminal, happy to get on their long flight together. They had no idea that at that very moment, trouble was already coming their way.
Delays
Talking about the situation on a popular social media platform, Kerry shared, “I thought that the airline crisis wouldn’t affect me, but it turns out it did.”
Traveling can often come with its fair share of nightmares, and that winter, many travelers were facing problems. The people around Kerry would often share several heartbreaking stories about flights being canceled. But she was about to suffer an even worse fate.
Moved To The Next Day
Kerry shared, “Leila and I waited through six delays until our flight was canceled.” At first, the flight was supposed to take off at 9 PM, but it was soon pushed to 10 PM because of worsening weather conditions.
With every hour, the delays kept coming, and eventually, six hours had passed and they were still waiting at the terminal. Kerry tried to stay hopeful during the ordeal, but deep down, she knew they wouldn’t fly that night.
Too Late
The flight attendants kept assuring the passengers that they would fly that night, but shortly after 2 AM, it was announced that their flight was moved to 2 PM the following day.
Most airport terminals do not operate past 2 AM, and because of this, an attendant insisted on accompanying Kerry and Leila to pick up their luggage. He then sent the mother and her daughter to the main terminal. Everything was about to take a nightmarish turn.
Downhill
The man who helped Kerry get her luggage informed her that she would find further assistance at the main terminal. But once Kerry and her daughter got there, no one else was around.
Kerry grew increasingly worried and decided to reach out to one of the attendants from the airline she had booked. It was too late for them to head back to her college apartment, and she wanted to know if the airline could offer them accommodation.
She Asked Again
She approached the attendant and asked if they could help them find accommodation or point them in the direction of a nearby hotel. The attendant didn’t respond, instead, she grumpily frowned down at them.
She offered no assistance, simply telling them that the flight was postponed to the next day. Everything was starting to go downhill.
Asking For Assistance
Kerry was frozen in her tracks for a few minutes, confused by the attendant’s reaction. She glanced around the terminal, realizing that it was almost empty.
She soon approached another attendant, determined to get a different response. She just needed a safe place where she and her daughter could rest for the night. But they were about to give her a heartbreaking response.
No Help
“Excuse me, ma’am,” Kerry called, hurrying to an attendant that happened to be passing by.
The woman faced her, stopping in her tracks as she saw Kerry pulling her luggage in one arm and holding a kid in the other.
“Hi,” she greeted Kerry with a bright smile. “Can I help you with something?” “Yes,” Kerry said. “I need to know if there are any hotels nearby. My daughter and I need a place to stay.”
What To Do Now
The attendant’s smile faded immediately, a look of fatigue replacing it. But that look leached away as she informed Kerry that the airline wasn’t responsible for their accommodation.
She added that she’d only been in the town for a few days as an attendant and couldn’t tell which hotels surrounded the airport. Excusing herself, she left the young mom stumped.
Get Out
“I held my composure,” revealed Kerry. “I was shaking, and I was very, very distraught by the way I was being treated.”
She tried to reach out to another attendant, hoping to at least get a few hotel names she could visit. But none of them came to her aid. She knew the night would be a tough one.
The Cold Winds
“They didn’t even have the decency to give us three names of nearby hotels that may or may not have availability that we could check,” Kerry said.
She resorted to asking anyone around for directions to nearby hotels, but the attendants called security to escort her and her daughter out. Before she knew it, they were alone in a snow-swallowed parking lot at 2 AM.
At The Parking Lot
The frozen December winds blew with vigor as Kerry stepped into the dark. She carried Leila in one hand and dragged their luggage with the other.
Given that it was late at night, the airport’s entrance was clear of any cars. Snow piled everywhere, stretching into the darkness from which the dim lights of a sleeping town twinkled. What had Kerry gotten herself into?
Lost And Hopeless
Kerry and Leila were locked outside of the airport past midnight. Hoping to at least find a parked cab on the lot at the end of the airport, the mom hurried there.
But all she found was more snow and darkness. “There was no soul on that lot except Leila and me, and we’re standing there with all our belongings,” she said. What was she to do?
To make matters, Kerry had carried all her cards with her, including bank cards, passports, and national and school IDs. She also had her daughter’s information with her.
“Someone could have easily pulled up with their car and caused harm to us.” She felt lost, hopeless, and vulnerable, praying that she and her kid would make it through the night.
Safe And Sound
Kerry was forced to think fast. She tried to get a taxi via the numerous apps on her phone, but luck wasn’t on her side.
No driver was remotely close to the airport, prompting her to move to her second plan. She would fight tooth and nail to ensure her daughter was safe through the night.
No Rooms
Kerry pulled up her phone’s map and perused all available hotels in the area. Calling each of them after the other, she began asking for accommodations.
But it was almost Christmas, so many tourists were visiting New York, making it difficult to find a vacant room. But that wasn’t the worst part of her search.
High Prices
Each of the hotels Kerry called had costly room prices. Most went for five hundred dollars and above, making the night worse than it already was.
But no price was too high when it came to Leila’s safety and well-being. Kerry would get a room even if it cost her an arm and a leg.
Expensive But Worth It
After a thirty-minute search, Kerry finally managed to get a room for seven hundred dollars. But as a young mom, she didn’t have that kind of money lying around. She dipped into cash meant for her student loan payments and settled the bill.
“I couldn’t risk my child’s health and safety. I had to do it.” But now that they had a room, they still had to reach the hotel safely.
A Quiet, Lonely Road
The road from the airport to the hotel was quiet, frozen in icy winds and blanketed in thick snow. Kerry made her way cautiously, pulling her bag with her eyes peeled.
The hotel was two miles away, and although Kerry was used to running longer distances, she’d never experienced a more frightening experience. She wasn’t even halfway through when something happened.
Leila Wakes Up
Leila, asleep in her mom’s arms, suddenly woke up. Taken aback by the darkness around her, cold breeze, and scant light from flickering street lights, she decided to inquire.
“Mommy, where are we?” the little girl asked. “Going on an adventure, sweety,” Kerry answered. She hoped the panic coursing through her veins wouldn’t leak into her words, transferring to her sweet daughter. But what Leila would say would leave her speechless.
Her Daughter’s Words
“Go back to sleep,” Kerry said soothingly, her eyes glued on the path before them, her ears isolating each sound around them. “We’re gonna be all right, mommy,” Leila said and tucked her head onto Kerry’s chest.
“Her words strengthen me,” Kerry shared while recalling the moment. Leila’s words beat all the fear and panic from her system, birthing energy in her that wasn’t there before.
Safe At Last
Before Kerry knew it, she was at the hotel’s entrance. She let out a sigh of relief as a valet ran to her, taking her luggage and ushering her into the warm hotel.
The mom and daughter duo would spend the night in a warm room away from the snowfall. They would enjoy a wonderful assortment of pastries and hot chocolate. But in the morning, Kerry would begin her quest for justice.
Calling Management
Kerry called airport management the following day, detailing her experience. She explained how badly she and her daughter were treated at the airport after their flight was postponed.
She continued by revealing how she and Leila spent an hour in the snow-covered parking lot searching for hotel accommodation and the long and dangerous two-mile trek that followed. She would get her revenge.
At Least Apologize
Kerry expected the airline to offer an apology for the harrowing night she’d had. But the airport management told her it could do nothing since the people she’d dealt with were employed by the airline.
But when she called the airline, their representative told her the airline was neither liable for the weather change that caused the delays nor the airport closing. But it didn’t stop there.
Who’s Liable?
“We’re not liable for our reps berating you,” the airline stated. “We’re not liable for anything.” The airline and airport representatives would throw Kerry into limbo after directing her to customer care, where none of her calls would go through.
Giving up, she and Leila would board the 2 PM flight and head home. Kerry would share her story online for awareness, not knowing the results it would garner.
Going Back Home
Kerry’s story went viral. In a caption accompanying the post, she wrote, “I love traveling because I love learning more about the world and seeing so many different corners of the world.”
“I never really have had any disastrous trips, but it sucks that I’m going to look back on this particular trip that had good memories while I was there tainted by the bad memory of me trying just to go back home.” But she didn’t stop there.
Help, If You Can
Kerry called out the airline and airport for not offering her help. They didn’t care that she was a woman carrying a child and luggage, with every bit of personal information on her.
They didn’t even bother to point her to a hotel where she could help herself. She hopes that these companies can be more humane. Taking a minute to assist someone costs nothing.