Two employees of a cargo handling agency at the airport were injured while working in one of the service bays when lightning struck the ground near them on Monday, police said.

Handyman Sanjay Thakur and utility agent Biswajit Roy fell unconscious on the ground.

A senior officer of Bidhannagar Commissionerate’s airport division said the men were undergoing treatment at the ESI Hospital on Tuesday.

On Monday, flight operations were disrupted for 25 minutes between 11.40am and 12.10pm because of bad weather. Four flights coming to Calcutta were diverted and six others were delayed. Another six flights which were to take off, were also delayed, said airport officials.

The Alipore met office had recorded 5.1mm of rain till 5.30pm in the city. Dum Dum, however, received 59mm of rain and was struck by a squall with a wind speed of 72kmph in the noon.

Thakur and Roy were working at service bay No. 15 when lightning struck the ground nearby, the airport officer said, quoting another who had spoken to the injured men as well as others who were working in the
area.

The lightning strike left Thakur and Roy stunned and they fell on the ground.

Airport officials and those who were working nearby rushed to their aid. Thakur sustained a head injury and Roy was repeatedly vomiting, said an airport official.

After providing preliminary treatment at the airport, they were taken to a private hospital off EM Bypass. Later they were shifted to the ESI Hospital, the official said.

After the incident, the airport authorities have asked the supervisors of the agency to ensure that the staff did not work in the open during lightning and thunderstorms in future.

The police, too, have spoken with the agency and asked them to ensure that their men do not work outdoors during squalls and thunderstorms, another senior officer of Bidhannagar Commissionerate said.