'Being stranded in New York blizzards was terrifying'

A retired firefighter said he and his wife were "absolutely terrified" after becoming stranded in blizzards which struck New York while they were on holiday.

Stuart Martin, a former chair of North Yorkshire County Council, said he, his wife April and two friends were lost for hours as they tried to search for a hotel room during Storm Hernando.

The situation arose when their flight back to the UK was cancelled, but airport officials mistakenly told them to find their own accommodation.

British Airways said it was sorry for the inconvenience experienced by its customers during the storm.

Martin said: "We were absolutely terrified - and didn't know how we were going to get out of it.

"It was a nightmare. We didn't know where to go. My wife asked a police officer to arrest us, as then at least we'd have been safe."

At the height of the storm, temperatures dropped to 21F (-6 C) and, according to the National Weather Center, New York's Central Park recorded 15in (38cm) of snowfall.

The couple flew back today and are now back home in Ripon, North Yorkshire.

He added: "We were so relieved to get home. We were still shaking, two days later, from the shock.

"I have run into countless burning buildings and that didn't scare me, but in that blizzard, I was petrified."

The staff who advised the Martins at JFK International Airport are not believed to work for British Airways, the airline they were travelling with.

They were told to leave the terminal, and before heading into the blizzard Martin rang a number of hotels, who said they were full.

His group were running low on medication, and his wife is registered disabled and suffers from leukaemia.

"It was scary. The wind was blowing into our faces. We were pulling hand luggage trolleys along - in the middle of the road, which was safer than the pavement.

"The conditions were absolutely freezing. My wife fell over at one point in this snow. It is hard to explain how frightening a situation like that is - and it was completely unnecessary.

"All we needed was a bit of support. When I got hold of someone from British Airways they said they were sorry.

"They have no idea about the conditions they left us in. I'm a member of the British Airways Club, and I'm absolutely disgusted with the way they treated us."

Eventually they bumped into two men who had just booked into a hotel that still had vacancies.

"They told us to go with them. I can't thank them enough. Without their help we would have been completely abandoned," he said.

A British Airways spokesperson said: "We're sorry for our customers' experience after their flight was delayed due to Storm Hernando arriving earlier than expected.

"Our teams are in contact with them to cover their expenses."

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