The air traffic control tower at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey was evacuated early Monday, after a report of smoke inside the tower. All flights were stopped around 7:30 a.m. Airport operations resumed about an hour later.
This came at the same time that New York’s LaGuardia Airport was also closed due to a deadly ground collision Sunday night between a plane and firetruck.
According to the FAA, a burning smell was reported from an elevator at the Newark tower.Â
Airport and FAA staff worked to move all air traffic control operations to a different tower so that flights could resume. Hundreds of flights have been impacted. Any travelers scheduled to pass through Newark Airport Monday should check with their airline on the status of their flight.
Over at LaGuardia, the FAA said flights will be grounded until at least 2 p.m.
Newark Airport made headlines earlier this month, when two planes on the ground made contact. A plane that was pushing back from its gate clipped the tail of a plane that was parked for deicing. Nobody was injured in that incident.
In February the TSA investigated an alleged stowaway on a flight out of Newark Liberty International. The woman – who was previously convicted of stowing away on a flight from JFK – allegedly slipped onto a United flight during boarding and wasn’t discovered until halfway through the flight to Milan.