Travelers wearing face masks arrive at Orlando International Airport on the day before Christmas.
Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Photos of crowded US airports during the Christmas holiday showed how many Americans ignored the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommendation to stay home.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the best way for Americans to celebrate December holidays was to stay home.
Air travelers wait to board a plane in Newark Liberty International Airport on December 24, 2020 in New Jersey.
Still, 1.19 million travelers passed through airports the day before Christmas Eve, the highest number since March, according to the Transportation and Security Administration.
Travelers pass through O'Hare International Airport on December 23 in Chicago, Illinois
Healthcare workers had said they expect the post-Christmas COVID-19 surge to be worse than the outbreak after Thanksgiving.
Travelers wait in the security line at Denver International Airport on Dec. 22.
Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered a stay-at-home order in December in parts of California due to high ICU capacity.
Travelers wait to check in luggage at the Los Angeles International Airport on Dec. 23.
As of December 28, Southern California and San Joaquin Valley regions reported 0% available ICU beds.
Travelers exit a terminal at the Los Angeles International Airport on Dec. 23.
Anthony Fauci said the COVID-19 surge "might actually get worse" after the Christmas and New Year's holidays.
Passengers walk through a crowded terminal at Dulles International airport in Dulles, Virginia on December 27, 2020.
The United Kingdom went into a restrictive lockdown before Christmas after reporting a new coronavirus strain that might be more contagious.
Travelers wait in crowded lines without keeping the CDC-recommended six feed of distance at the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport on December 22.
Leading disease experts, like Fauci and former Food and Drug Administration chief Scott Gottlieb, said the new strain is likely already in the US.
Holiday season travelers walk through a terminal at Miami International Airport on December 24.
LA County began testing for the variant coronavirus strain around Christmas time.
Travelers wear face masks while passing through the south security checkpoint in the main terminal of Denver International Airport Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020.
The CDC recently said 1 million Americans received initial COVID-19 vaccine doses within 10 days of the Pfizer vaccine gaining FDA authorization on December 11. The CDC had recommended healthcare workers and nursing home residents get inoculated first.
A flight crew member walks through a Delta terminal at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on Dec. 22, 2020, in Atlanta.
But some healthcare workers said vaccines may not curb a COVID-19 surge after Christmas.
A passenger approaches two airline workers in Christmas themed headwear at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, in Arlington, Virginia on December 22.
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