NEW DELHI, JUNE 28
A portion of a canopy at a departure terminal at New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport collapsed early Friday as monsoon rains lashed the Indian capital, killing one person and injuring six others, officials said.
All flight departures from Terminal 1 were temporarily suspended as rescuers cleared the debris to rescue anyone trapped there, the airport authority said.
The collapse occurred at Terminal 1, which is used for domestic operations at New Delhi's main airport.
The fire services control room said the injured were taken to a hospital.
"Due to heavy rain since early this morning, a portion of the canopy of the old departure forecourt" collapsed at around 5 a.m., an airport authority statement said.
In addition to the roof, some support beams also collapsed, damaging cars in the pickup and drop-off area at the terminal, the Press Trust of India news agency said.
One of the six injured people was rescued from a car on which an iron beam had fallen, PTI said.
Vandana Tripathi, a passenger, said it was raining heavily when she left her home for the airport. "I thought maybe because of the rains the roof collapsed. I don't know the exact reason of it falling."
Anees Khan, a taxi driver and an eyewitness, said he was sleeping in his car. "Around 5:30 in the morning there was a very loud lightning sound. When I got out, I saw that the roof had collapsed and there were around 8 to 10 cars under it."
Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu visited the airport and said boarding operations from the damaged terminus were being shifted to two other terminals.
He told reporters that a thorough inspection of the damaged structure was being carried out.
An IndiGo airline official said passengers inside the terminal had already boarded their flights but those booked on flights later in the day will be offered alternatives.
Friday's rain was the first big shower of the monsoon season in New Delhi, the India Meteorological Department said. It flooded New Delhi streets, causing traffic snarls. The monsoon season lasts until September-end.
