At least one person was killed and four others were injured after a portion of the roof of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, Terminal-1 collapsed on cars, including taxis, amid heavy rains on Friday.
According to Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), “A portion of the canopy of the old departure forecourt of Delhi Airport’s Terminal 1 collapsed around 5 am on Friday (June 28).
The incident happened “due to heavy rain since early Friday morning,” DIAL said.
Are flights departing from Delhi T-1?
Following the incident the Delhi airport announced that IndiGo and SpiceJet flights departing from T1 have been cancelled till 2 pm on Friday.
Departures from Delhi T-1 have been temporarily suspended and check-in counters have been closed as safety measures, the airport said.
“All departing and arriving flights from Terminal 3 and Terminal 2 are fully operational. Flights at Terminal 1 Arrivals are also operating,” the DIAL said.
Delhi Airport T-1 roof collapse videos
Delhi T-1 roof collapse: What actually happened?
As per the officials, the roof sheet and the support beams of the Delhi airport T-1 collapsed on Friday morning, damaging the cars parked in the pick-up and drop area of the terminal.
The Delhi Fire Service received a call about the incident around 5:30 am, after which they immediately dispatched three fire-tenders to the airport.
Soon, the rescue operation was initiated to safely bring out those trapped. Those injured were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.
One person was rescued from a car after an iron beam had fallen on it.
At the time of filing this report, a rescue operation was underway to make sure no one else was trapped in the damaged vehicles.
Legal action being taken
The Delhi Police said the shed outside Terminal 1 of IGIA (domestic airport), spanning from Departure Gate No. 1 to Gate No. 2, collapsed, in which around four vehicles have been damaged and about six people have been injured and one person has died.
“All injured persons are stable,” the Delhi Police confirmed, adding that cops from the Delhi Police, fire service, CISF and NDRF teams are present on spot.
“Legal action is being taken,” the Delhi Police said.
Meanwhile, Union Minister of Civil Aviation, Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said that he is personally monitoring the Delhi airport T-1 roof collapse incident.
“Personally monitoring the roof collapse incident at T1 Delhi Airport. First responders are working at the site. Also advised the airlines to assist all affected passengers at T1. The injured have been evacuated to hospital. Rescue operations are still ongoing,” Naidu said in a post on X.
Naidu also visited the Terminal-1 of the Delhi Airport to inspect the area where the roof collapsed on Friday morning.
Later in a post on X, the minister said: “All required rescue operations are being conducted at the Delhi’s Terminal-1.”
Talking to media, Naidu said: “Right now the situation is under control. The rest of the terminal building has been closed and everything is being thoroughly inspected so that there is no further untoward incident here.”
Rs 20 lakh compensation for the deceased
The Civil Aviation minister also announced compensation of Rs 20 lakh for the deceased and Rs 3 lakh for the injured.
Provide full refunds or accommodate passengers on alternate flights
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has advised airlines to accommodate passengers on alternate flights or provide full refunds under the regulations.
Passengers fume
A passenger travelling to Bengaluru said he had a flight at 8:15 am but there has been no communication from the authorities after the roof collapse incident.
He further said there are about 700 to 800 people stuck waiting for clarity about the flight departure status.
Another passenger said that they have been asked to go to Terminal-2 from where they will be getting clarification about the departure of the flight which was scheduled to leave from T-1.
IndiGo assures full refund or alternative flights
In a post on X, IndiGo said, “We’d like to reassure you that we’re here to assist you with alternate flight options or full refund. We might take slightly longer than usual to respond as our contact centers are experiencing high volumes.”
It also said that due to structural damage to Delhi Airport (Terminal 1) caused by adverse weather, flight operations are impacted. All flights scheduled to depart between 1000-1400 hrs have been cancelled.
Delhi rains create havoc
A few hours of rain in Delhi threw life out of gear in the city as most parts of the national capital got submerged in water.
Rain brought respite from the scorching heat for the people in Delhi-NCR, but has also caused waterlogging, leading to traffic snarls and road closures.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said between 8:30 am on June 27 till 5:30 am on June 28, Safdarjung has recorded 153.7mm of rainfall, making it a “very heavy” rainfall spell for Delhi and counting.
Delhi is predicted to get more showers on Friday. As per the IMD, rain accompanied by thunderstorms and winds with speed of 20-40 km/hour would continue to occur over Delhi-NCR.
With inputs from agencies
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Video: 1 dead, 4 injured after roof collapses at Delhi airport’s T-1; flights cancelled
