Harvey storm leads to thousands of canceled flights nationwide, including LAX

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- As of late Monday afternoon, more than 1,000 flights in and out of Houston had been canceled due to Tropical Storm Harvey, which also affected more than two dozen flights at Los Angeles International Airport.

George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston was expected to open Monday afternoon and William P. Hobby Airport was slated to remain closed through Wednesday.

At LAX, more than 30 flights to and from Houston were canceled for Monday and Tuesday. For a full list of cancellations at LAX, visit flightaware.com.

Ashley Patterson and her mother were among the travelers stranded at the airport. The younger Patterson said she was feeling "just a lot of anxiety."

"It's hard to not be there," she said of her home in Houston. "We're just trying to get closer to home, that way we can get there as soon as we can. But obviously, we don't want to put ourselves in harm's way either."

She and her mother hoped to fly to Austin and wait there until conditions allowed them to return to Houston by Wednesday or Thursday.

"That's just going to depend on when the water goes down," Ashley Patterson said. "Right now, the freeways are completely underwater, the roads are closed, so we'll see."

MORE: Efforts to protect downtown Houston from Harvey floods could still endanger homes

The historic hurricane and floods that have followed have forced more than 5,000 flight cancellations nationwide.

Southwest Airlines stepped in to help those struggling in the midst of Harvey's wrath. On Sunday, the Federal Aviation Administration gave the company authorization to begin sending rescue flights into Dallas.

MORE: SoCal Red Cross volunteers head to aid Harvey storm victims