Rain and fog delay last-minute holiday travelers

A record number of Americans are traveling this holiday season, and many of them are facing bad weather as they hit the road and the skies.

Heavy rain and strong winds swept across Southern California. CBS Los Angeles reports more rain is in the forecast for Christmas Day, and mountain areas could see snow.

Rainfall led to flooding and evacuations in parts of South Carolina. And in South Florida, flash flooding forced a brief shutdown at Fort Lauderdale International Airport on one of the busiest travel days of the year, contributing to long lines and hundreds of domestic flight delays.

Airport delays were also a problem in Chicago after the National Weather Service said “dense, freezing fog” developed overnight. The FAA grounded flights for a short time Tuesday morning at Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway international airports until the fog cleared.

“These are just about the worst conditions you can have for flying,” weather service meteorologist Kevin Donofrio told The Associated Press. “When visibility gets down to a quarter-mile, that’s when it gets really dangerous for planes to land.”

AAA estimates more than 115 million Americans will travel this holiday season — a 3.9% increase over last year.

CBS News correspondent Mola Lenghi reports the busiest travel day this holiday season is expected to be Thursday, December 26th. That’s reflected in the price of airline tickets, which jump from an average of $525 on Christmas Eve to nearly $700 the day after Christmas