Turtles invade NY airport
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Turtles invade NY airport
New 10:51AM Thursday Jul 09, 2009
NEW YORK – A runway at New York City’s Kennedy Airport was shut down on Wednesday morning after 78 turtles emerged from a nearby bay and crawled onto the tarmac.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey says grounds crews rounded up the wayward reptiles in about 35 minutes and deposited them back in the water, farther from airport property.
The shutdown disrupted flight schedules, though, with delays climbing to nearly 1 1/2 hours.
Pilots reported the first turtle sightings at around 8:30 a.m.
The Port Authority identified the turtles as Diamondback terrapins. They appeared to be about 20 centimetres long and weigh a kilo each.
- AP