LaGuardia Airport runway closed after ground 'depression' near tarmac

A LaGuardia Airport runway has closed for the third time in as many months, this time due to a “two inch depression” found close by, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said.

Runway 4/22 closed about 5 p.m. “out of an abundance of caution” after the dip was discovered adjacent to the tarmac, one of only two at LaGuardia, the Port Authority said in a statement. The agency said there is “no immediate safety concern” due to the depression.

The same runway that shuttered Wednesday evening was forced to close on the morning of May 20 after a sinkhole appeared. The runway could not reopen until the evening of May 22 by which time more than 1,000 flights had been either delayed or cancelled, Newsday reported at the time.

The runway was also closed for more than three full days following the fatal March 22 collision between Air Canada Flight 8646 out of Montreal and a Port Authority fire truck.

Passengers were urged by the Port Authority to “check with their airlines regarding flight status.”

Overnight, Port Authority crews will “conduct additional testing, work to identify the cause, and perform any necessary stabilization work,” the agency said.

“Our goal is to complete the assessment and any necessary repair work overnight and return the runway to service as soon as it is safe to do so,” the Port Authority added. The airport's other runway will remain operational “with a goal of returning Runway 4/22 to service tomorrow morning.”