Power cables snap at airport; causes chaos

The Indira Gandhi International Airport plunged into darkness and chaos on Tuesday evening after cables supplying power to the airport got snapped due to Delhi Metro’s ongoing construction. Airport operations were hampered as normal power supply could only be restored after 24 hours.

The problem began at 4 pm on Tuesday after there was a power cut and the emergency power back up system kicked in. “There was lot of chaos later in the evening when peak hour started,” said an official of an International Airline who didn’t wish to be identified.

“Only essential operations were on at the airport and many lights were not working. The air-conditioning wasn’t working properly either but thankfully the weather wasn’t that harsh,” he said. “Many counters didn’t have lights and hand baggage was checked manually,” he said.

There were no lights at the parking stand on the airside where aircraft are parked. “Though there was no problem in parking the planes, loading and unloading of baggage posed a huge problem,” he said.

Airport operator Delhi International Airport Ltd. (DIAL) said power supply to the international terminal 2 was interrupted at 8 pm as a result of breach in the cable due to metro construction outside the terminal. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation is constructing a high-speed Metro link between the airport and New Delhi Railway Station. “Immediately, all essential systems of the terminal were put on back-up power supply and normal operations continued,” a DIAL spokesman said. DIAL had also put up diesel run generators at many places.

DMRC spokesman Anuj Dayal admitted that cables had snapped at night but said it affected only the parking area at the airport.