Heavy rain disrupted flight operations and caused waterlogging in the operational area of Kolkata airport on Tuesday afternoon.
No flight could land at the airport between 1.12pm and 1.52pm because of the rain, said an airport official.
“During the time, 16 flights which were scheduled to arrive, could not land. At least one flight had to be diverted,” said the official. However, there was no problem with the departure of flights.
“Heavy rain had reduced visibility that caused the delays in landing, which led to holding of flights on the air,” said an official.
“However, the visibility was enough for an aircraft to take off,” added the official. According to the Met office, Dum Dum received 70mm of rainfall between 8.30am and 5.30pm on Tuesday.
The Telegraph
Most of that rain came down between 1pm and 2pm, said a Met official. In Met parlance, 60mm of rainfall within 24 hours is considered as heavy.
Apart from creating disruptions, the rainfall also caused waterlogging in the operational area of the airport.
According to airport officials, some of the remote parking bays, away from the terminal building, were waterlogged after the heavy shower.
Coaches and vehicles carrying checked-in luggage from the terminal building to the flights had to move through waterlogged paths, said officials.
Some of the hangars, where aircraft are parked during the night and during repairs, were waterlogged, said officials.
“However, the water receded fast in little more than an hour,” said an airport official. This was the first waterlogging in the operational area of the airport this monsoon, said an official.
The Telegraph
“Because of the Metro construction, most of the drainage systems have been choked which is affecting the flow of rainwater. Our civil engineering officials are looking into the problem. They will hold talks with the Metro authorities and we’ll discuss the issue on Wednesday,” said a senior official of Kolkata airport.
Metro Rail sources said they have installed pumps which are being used during heavy showers. “The project work is also going on 200 metres away from the airport’s operational area,” said sources.
Last year, The Telegraph reported how heavy rain had caused waterlogging in the operational area of the airport several times.
Passengers were seen wading through the waterlogged after getting sown or while boarding coaches from the terminal building.
During Tuesday’s shower, officials said there was no complaint of water leaks inside the terminal building. Earlier, it was a common site that water would leak from several parts of the building because of the faulty roof. Buckets and tubs would be placed at several places across the terminal to collect the leaking water.
“We have conducted a thorough overhaul of the roof that covers 7,500 square metres. We are expecting the seepage of water would not happen during this monsoon,” said an official.
