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A bride-to-be has recounted her “devastation” after missing her wedding day, which cost more than $70,000, and spending New Year’s Eve alone because of a Southwest flight cancellation.
Katie Demko, 46, of St. Louis, was due to meet her fiancé Michael in Belize for a destination wedding on January 30.
However, after arriving at the airport last Tuesday with friends and family in tow, he learned that his flight had been canceled because there were not enough flight attendants on duty and there was no way to get another plane out.
Meanwhile, her husband-to-be arrived in Belize on another airline with his mother and other family members, leaving the couple stranded more than 2,000 miles away.
Katie Demko, from St Louis, was supposed to meet her fiancé Michael in Belize for a destination wedding on January 30, but her flight was cancelled.
The happy couple, pictured here, were supposed to get married in Belize with friends and family, but their plans fell apart due to travel chaos.
Demko said CNN who cried all morning because the travel agents couldn’t find alternative travel plans.
His friends also tried to offer him their tickets as they flew in on Wednesday, but the airline was unable to change the names or change the reservations.
Recalling the chain of events, the mother of three said: “Michael is there without a girlfriend, it’s hard to get married without your girlfriend there.”
“It was very important to Michael and I to have our children with us, as well as our family to be there at this time.”
Fittingly, Demko revealed a photo of a beverage mug they made before their big day emblazoned with the word ‘un-Belize-able’ along with their planned wedding date.
Demko is just one of thousands of travelers whose Southwest flights were canceled around Christmas weekend amid storms and operational difficulties.
The couple booked Victoria House on the west coast of Belize for their wedding venue, but the resort was unable to offer a refund or postpone the event.
Rooms range from $210 for a stateroom to $2,125 a night for a five-bed villa and Demko estimates “more than” $70,000 was lost on rooms at the hotel alone.
The catering was another lost cost, but they were able to postpone some of the wedding services, including photography and flower arrangements.
While the financial impact was a blow, Demko said the whole drama had bigger repercussions.
She explained: “Yes, there is definitely a cost associated with it, but more importantly we have so many of my family members and so many of my friends putting in so much time, emotion [and] excitement for this day. We are devastated.
Fittingly, Demko revealed a photo of a beverage mug they made before their big day emblazoned with the word ‘un-Belize-able’ along with the date their wedding was supposed to take place.
The couple spent New Year’s Eve talking on the phone instead of calling together as husband and wife.
Since the trip debacle, Demko says Southwest hasn’t reached out to her “even to apologize.”
The pharmaceutical sales representative says she is particularly surprised by the lack of contact and is a frequent flyer for the airline.
The couple booked Victoria House on the west coast of Belize for their wedding venue, but the resort was unable to offer a refund or postpone the event.
Demko, pictured with her three children, is just one of thousands of travelers whose Southwest flights were canceled around Christmas weekend amid storms and operational difficulties.
She concluded: “I know they’re probably dealing with a ton because of the whole mess, but not a single person from that company has reached out.”
As for the rescheduling of the wedding, the bride-to-be told DailyMail.com that they are considering a second attempt on Presidents’ Day in February, “but we’re not sure if we can make that happen logistically. “.
Demko is just one of thousands of travelers whose Southwest flights were canceled around Christmas weekend amid storms and operational difficulties.
The Dallas airline accounted for half of the canceled flights worldwide on Monday, December 26.
As a result, federal regulators have promised a rigorous review of what happened at the airline, with all eyes on outdated crew scheduling technology that left flight crews misplaced after the storm, essentially shutting down almost all airline operations.
In response to the incident, Southwest told DailyMail.com: “We appreciate the continued patience and support of our valued customers, and we apologize for the inconvenience of the past week.”
‘If necessary, we offer various methods for customers to seek our support [via our website].
“We look forward to the opportunity to address any customer needs in the coming days as we strive to return to our previous level of Southwest hospitality and reliability.”
Southwest CEO Robert Jordan also said in an interview with ABC’s Good Morning America on Friday that after security, there is no greater focus than reimbursing customers and reuniting them with their luggage.
“This has impacted so many people, so many customers, during the holidays. It has impacted our employees. And I’m really sorry about that,’ Jordan said. “There’s just no way to apologize enough because we love our clients, we love our people, and we really impacted their plans.”
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