‘I am devastated’: Heartbroken bride reveals she missed her own WEDDING, lost $70,000, and was stuck 2,000 miles from her fiance on New Year’s after Southwest canceled her flight
- Katie Demko, from St Louis, was due to meet her fiancé Michael in Belize
- When she arrived at the airport she learned that her flight had been canceled
- Southwest was unable to offer an alternative flight so she missed her big day
- Meanwhile, her fiancé made it to Belize on another airline with his family
A bride-to-be has told of her ‘devastation’ after missing her wedding day which cost more than $70,000 and spending New Year’s Eve alone because of a canceled Southwest flight.
Katie Demko, 46, from 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 she learned that her flight had been canceled as there weren’t enough flight attendants on call and there was no way of getting another outbound plane.
Meanwhile, her husband-to-be made it to Belize on another airline with his mother and other family members – leaving the couple stranded more than 2,000 miles apart.
Katie Demko, from St Louis, was due to meet her fiancé Michael in Belize for a destination wedding on January 30 but her flight was canceled
The happy couple, pictured here, were due to tie the knot in Belize with friends and family in tow but their plans fell apart due to travel chaos
Demko told CNN that she was left crying all morning as travel agents could find no alternative travel plans.
Her friends also tried offering her their tickets as they were flying on the Wednesday, but the airline was unable to switch the names and alter the bookings.
Recalling the chain of events, the mother-of-three said: ‘Michael’s there without a bride – its hard to get married without your bride there.
‘It was very important for Michael and I to have our kids with us as well as our family to be there for this time.’
Rather fittingly, Demko revealed a photo of a drinks cup they got made ahead of their big day emblazoned with the word ‘un-Belize-able’ along with the planned date of their wedding
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 per night for a five-bed villa and Demko estimates there was ‘well over’ $70,000 lost in rooms alone at the hotel.
The catering was another lost cost but they were able to postpone some of the wedding services including the photography and flower arrangements.
While the financial impact was a blow, Demko said that the whole drama had greater repercussions.
She explained: ‘Yes there’s definitely a cost associated but more importantly we have so many of my family and so many of my friends that put so much time, emotion [and] excitement for this day. We are just devastated.’
Rather fittingly, Demko revealed a photo of a drinks cup they got made ahead of their big day emblazoned with the word ‘un-Belize-able’ along with the date that their wedding was meant to take place.
The couple went on to spend New Year’s Eve talking over the telephone instead of ringing it in together as husband and wife.
Since the travel debacle, Demko says that Southwest has not reached out to her ‘even just to apologize’.
The pharmaceutical sales rep says she is particularly surprised by the lack of contact and she is a frequent flyer with 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 are probably dealing with a ton because of the whole mess, but not one single person from that company has reached out.’
In terms of rescheduling the wedding, the bride-to-be told DailyMail.com that they are looking at possibly going for a second attempt on Presidents’ Day in February ‘but we are 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 carrier accounted for half of worldwide canceled flights on Monday, December 26.
As a result, Federal regulators have vowed a rigorous review of what happened at the airline, with all eyes on outdated crew-scheduling technology that left flight crews out of place after the storm hit, essentially shutting down almost all of the carrier’s operations.
In response to the incident Southwest told DailyMail.com: ‘We value the continued patience and support of our valued customers, and we apologize for the inconveniences of the past week.’
‘If needed, we offer several methods for customers to seek support from us [via our website].
‘We look forward to the opportunity to address any needs of our customers over 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 safety, there is no greater focus than reimbursing customers and getting them reunited with their luggage.
‘This has impacted so many people, so many customers, over the holidays. It´s impacted our employees. And I´m extremely sorry for that,’ Jordan said. ‘There´s just no way almost to apologize enough because we love our customers, we love our people and we really impacted their plans.’
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