Cyclone Tauktae: Mumbai airport operations' closure extended up to 8 pm

SpiceJet flight from Chennai diverted to Surat because of bad weather caused by the cyclone.

Owing to the threats created by the raging Cyclone Tauktae, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai has extended closure of all operations till 8 pm on Monday, said MIAL.

The earlier closure was supposed to happen between 11 am to 2 pm.

This resulted in at least 3 in-bound flights of private airlines getting diverted to less turbulent locations. A SpiceJet service was diverted to Surat, an IndiGo flight has returned to Lucknow while another IndiGo service was diverted to Hyderabad.

An official spokesperson said that the CSMIA closure move was necessitated in view of the alerts over the Cyclone Tauktae - currently passing by Mumbai with windspeeds of 75-85 kmph - as the storm hurtles to south Gujarat.

Cyclone Tauktae hit Mumbai with full fury around after midnight of Monday (May 17) bringing with it heavy rains, thunder, lightning and powerful gales, wreaking havoc on normal life in the entire coastal region and the country's commercial capital.

Authorities in Mumbai have moved hundreds of Covid-19 patients to other facilities. Prime Minister Narendra Modi told his senior government officials to ensure “maintenance of all essential services such as power, telecommunications, health and drinking water,” according to a May 15 statement from Press Information Bureau.