By IANS
Hyderabad : Heavy rain once again turned the Visakhapatnam airport into a lake, forcing authorities to suspend all services to and from the coastal city in Andhra Pradesh Saturday.
Incessant rain for the last two days due to low pressure over the Bay of Bengal inundated the airport, despite the new drainage system built a few months ago to prevent frequent flooding.
Floodwaters from a nearby reservoir and hill streams gushed on the runway and the terminal building area, forcing authorities to suspend all 12 services for the day.
Passengers had a tough time due to cancellations to all destinations including Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata.
It was still not clear if the services would resume Sunday as the rain continued to lash the city.
The heavy rain and floods have already claimed five lives in the city.
The flooding is not new for the airport as air services remained suspended for several days due to the same problem last year. However, after authorities took up some works and airport upgradation recently, passengers were hoping the problem had been overcome.
With the new 10,500 feet runway becoming operational in June, wide-bodied aircrafts began landing at Vizag.
Authorities had hoped that the new runway would address the problem of flooding as the height of the runway was increased by one metre.
The airport, which is controlled by the Indian Navy, was also planning to have night landing facilities.
The city, which is the headquarters of the Eastern Naval Command and is home to the state-owned Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, is emerging as a major industrial centre with many industries setting up their units. It is also emerging as an IT hub with several firms setting up their operations.
About 60 flights are being operated every week linking Vizag with Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai and Delhi.