A building society manager has told how she was stranded for three days on her return from ice-bound Chicago.
Ros Emson battled to get home as deep-freeze polar weather gripped one of the USA’s biggest cities.
Ros, manager of the Yorkshire Building Society branch in New Street, Huddersfield, had been to Chicago to stay with sister Christina Rosario and her family.
Ros, who travelled alone, flew out for Christmas and New Year but her return flight was cancelled twice and she spent a night on a wooden chair at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.
Chicago is in the midst of the worst cold snap for two decades.
Across the US temperatures have plunged leaving at least 21 people dead.
The big chill has seen temperatures in Chicago dip to -27 degrees C and there has been at least 2ft of snow.
Ros, who regularly travels to Chicago, said the weather turned the day before New Year’s Eve when it snowed day and night.
“It was very, very cold but you expect that,” said Ros.
As the temperature plummeted planes iced up and flights were cancelled.
Ros had been due to leave Chicago on January 2 but her flight was cancelled twice before she got to the airport.
Eventually she jetted out of Chicago but delays meant she missed her connecting flight at Newark.
She was then re-booked on a flight to Manchester yesterday but should have been back at work on Monday.
She was told she could take a chance on an earlier flight – and joined a four-hour queue for customer services.
Ros said: “It got to just past midnight and I was fourth from the front when they came to say they were closing for the night.
“I was near the front but there were 200 people behind me. People were furious.”
Ros spent the night on a wooden chair before the desk re-opened at 5.30am.
“I was lucky,” said Ros. “There was one seat left on a flight at 7.30pm that night, Sunday.
“I booked into a hotel for the day and got a few hours’ sleep.”
There were more delays as the flight was held up for connecting passengers and eventually Ros arrived back in Manchester at 9am on Monday.
“When I got off the plane at Manchester it was like heat hitting you! It was really mild.
“It was still cold, of course but it felt quite comfortable.
“After all that I feel very lucky.”
Chicago has been hit hard. Three trains with 500 passengers on board were stopped by blowing and drifting snow.
It was even too cold for lone Polar bear Anana at Chicago’s Lincoln Park Zoo.
She didn’t have enough body fat to keep her warm so she was moved inside.
