Cyclone Michaung: Chennai airport closed till Tuesday morning as rain hammers city

The flight operations at the Chennai airport have been suspended till 9 am on Tuesday due to heavy rainfall and winds caused by Cyclone Michaung. "Airfield closed for arrival and departure operations till 0900 hrs IST tomorrow due to adverse weather conditions," the authority said in a tweet.

Earlier, the flight operations were suspended till 11 pm on Tuesday. However, as rough weather persisted over the city, the suspension was extended till Tuesday morning.  

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Heavy rains have pounded Chennai and nearby districts under the impact of a cyclonic storm, which is likely to cross the coast in Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday. Low-lying areas and many residential parts witnessed inundation. Several areas in the city saw power outages and internet disruption as torrential rains accompanied by squally winds continued to lash the region. 

The Chennai airport operations were first suspended for two hours, from 9.40 am to 11.40 am. As many as 70 flights arriving to and departing from the airport were cancelled owing to incessant rains. The runway and tarmac also remain shut, news agency PTI reported. 

Chennai and nearby Chengalpet, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts received widespread rains since late Sunday due to the cyclonic storm. According to airport officials, 12 domestic outbound services, including to destinations like Ahmedabad and Thiruvananthapuram were cancelled.

Four international services, including to Dubai and Srilanka, were cancelled by a private carrier. Three arriving international services were diverted to Bengaluru. 

(With inputs from PTI)