A low-level, persistent layer of fog on Tuesday caused 16 flights to be cancelled or diverted at Yampa Valley Regional Airport.

According to Kevin Booth, the airport’s director, the weather conditions affecting the commercial flights are not uncommon.

“It happens once or twice a year where you get just the right amount of wind, just the right difference between temperature and dew point, and you get ground fog,” he said. “A thousand feet above my head it’s clear, blue skies; at runway level, the visibility is less than a quarter of a mile.”

Booth said a single commercial flight took off Tuesday morning, along with a couple of private jets, but the foggy weather persisted all day, causing delays for travelers and forcing many to book hotel rooms for the night or to make alternative travel arrangements.

The cancellations from the fog on Tuesday came after snow conditions on Saturday caused four flight diversions.

The diversions and cancellations caused headaches for passengers, but Booth said neither the airlines, nor the airport, are responsible for compensating them for the inconvenience.

“If it is diverted for weather, then the airline is not responsible for putting (passengers) up in hotels,” said Booth. “We help them find the rooms, we help them find transportation, but we don’t pay for their hotel rooms or their transportation.”