One dead in Delhi airport T1 roof collapse, flight ops suspended

1 person died and 4 others were injured after a portion of the roof at Terminal 1 of the Delhi airport collapsed amid heavy rain early Friday morning.

Following the incident, all departures from the Terminal 1 have been suspended until further notice, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said. Alternate arrangements are being made to ensure the smooth operation of flights, officials added.

The airlines have been advised to accommodate passengers on alternate flights or provide full refunds under the regulations, the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said. Sixteen departure flights and 12 arrival flights have been cancelled since midnight, according to the officials.

“In an unfortunate development, due to the collapse of the canopy at Delhi Airport Terminal 1 today morning, a few passengers got hurt. They were promptly provided with medical assistance on the spot and those taken to hospital. Their whereabouts are being regularly monitored. As a result, all departures have been temporarily suspended and all check-in counters have been closed till further notice. Hon’ble Minister Sh Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu is personally monitoring the development,” the ministry wrote on X.

Meanwhile, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu reached the airport to take stock of the situation. He was briefed about the accident by the officials, they said.

Minister Naidu, after the review, said that the situation is under control and a thorough inspection is underway. He announced that a countrywide audit will be done to assess the risk.

“A section of the canopy which is outside the airport has collapsed due to heavy rains. We express our condolences to the life that has been lost in this tragic incident, four people have also been injured,” he said.

“Everyone was available at the site and they have done thorough inspection so that no other casualties are there. So, 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,” the minister added.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (IGI) Usha Rangnani said traffic going to T-1 departure of the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport has been diverted at CISF check post, towards T-1 arrival.

Besides the roof sheet, the support beams collapsed, damaging the cars parked in the pick-up and drop area of the terminal, the officials said.

The Fire Service said that they received a call about a roof collapse at around 5.30 in the morning. At least four fire tenders were rushed to the spot to attend to the emergency, it added.

Terminal-1 has only domestic flight operations. The IGIA airport has three terminals — T1, T2 and T3.

In Short

⦿ Two people were injured in the collapse on early Friday morning
⦿ Flight operations suspended at Terminal 1
⦿ Safdarjung observatory recorded 22.8 cm rain in 24 hours

Meanwhile, the opposition leaders slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the incident. Terminal 1, which was recently expanded to accommodate more passengers, was inaugurated by PM Modi in March.

However, the Aviation Minister said that the roof that collapsed was of an old building opened in 2009.

“…we are taking this incident seriously…I want to clarify that the building inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi is on the other side and the building that collapsed here is an old building and was opened in 2009,” the minister said.