Roof collapse at Delhi airport kills one, cancels flights

A roof collapsed under heavy rain and winds at the main airport in the Indian capital New Delhi on Friday, killing one person and canceling flights from a domestic terminal, officials said.

A section of the canopy at the departure area of ​​Delhi Airport’s Terminal 1 collapsed early in the morning and flight operations were suspended until 2 p.m., India’s aviation minister told reporters.

The entire terminal, one of three at the country’s busiest airport, has been evacuated and an inquiry into the collapse has been ordered, the minister, Kinjarapu Ramohan Naidu, said.

At least 10 flights were canceled and 40 were delayed, according to data from flight-tracking platform Flightradar24.

Eight injured have been taken to hospital and the rescue operation is over, said Atul Garg, director of the Delhi Fire Service.

Footage from Indian television channels showed a taxi crushed under a damaged metal pillar at the entrance to the terminal, which is mainly used by low-cost carriers IndiGo and SpiceJet for domestic flights.

Indigo is operated by Interglobe Aviation.

The incident happened at 5 a.m. on Thursday, usually a busy time for domestic flights carrying people across the country, a statement from the airport published on X said.

The airport area received about 148.5 millimeters of rain in a three-hour period early this morning, more than the average for the whole of June, according to the India Meteorological Office.

Many other parts of Delhi were also flooded and cars were trapped in thigh-deep water. Metro services were affected and traffic snarls were reported from many parts of the city.

Several residents in Delhi also complained of power outages.

In India’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, at least 20 people have died in various rains and floods over the past 48 hours, including seven due to lightning, officials said.

GMR Airports Infrastructure, which manages the Delhi International Airport, is also its top shareholder with a 64% stake. Its shares were down as much as 2.1% in early trading.