Canadian airlines WestJet and Sunwing made headlines this week after canceling all of their flights leaving Vancouver International Airport. A TikToker went viral after sharing their experience with the cancellations firsthand.
In a video with over 10.1 million views, TikToker M (@mrs.watster) shared a clip of an announcement from a WestJet employee who tried to explain to customers that they cannot be rebooked and that flights are canceled for the foreseeable future.
@mrs.watster Its the strut away at the end for me #fyp #foryoupage #yvrchaos #yvr #yvrsnowstorm #westjet #westjetfail #vancouversnow #vancouverairport ♬ a l l i w a n t f o r c h r i s t m a s – ❤️🎄 || 🎅🏻❄️
“If you have a flight departing today, we will not help you rebook at the airport,” the representative said. “We have flights still departing today that we do not have enough staffing to check in those people.”
“If you have a home to go to, please go home. If you do not, the airport is safe. There’s some food here,” he continued. “If you need help, call the WestJet reservation line. Good luck.”
While President and CEO at Vancouver Airport Authority Tamara Vrooman called wait times like these “unacceptable,” she also stressed that YVR was trying to operate as best as it can given safety concerns.
“We recognize that travel has been challenging for passengers and the effects that extreme winter weather is having on individuals and families this holiday season,” she said, according to Vancouver is Awesome. “We want to assure our community that we have taken every measure possible to keep people, planes, and bags moving safely.”
In the comments, many users expressed their sympathy for the WestJet representative seen in the video.
“They couldn’t have done that on a PA system? They really threw homie to the wolves,” one user wrote.
“The *emotional labour* this man is NOT being paid for…” another said.
“And they made him announce this without security around him… god bless him,” a third added.
WestJet is offering refunds for canceled flights and for flights in the near future that could be affected by the storm. Information about these refunds is available on the company’s website.
The Daily Dot reached out to WestJet via email and M via TikTok comment.
