Penang airport hit by floods after heavy rain

GEORGE TOWN: Heavy rain for more than 90 minutes caused flash floods at the Penang International Airport (PIA) today.

When contacted, PIA senior airport manager Nadzim Hashim said the rain started pouring down at 8.30am and that the Meteorology Department recorded rainfall of 48.8mm.

He said the most affected area was the parking area for the turboprop planes where the water was ankle deep and spilled over to the departure lounge for the flights using turboprop planes.

A total of 28 passengers on one flight had to wade through the water to get on a flight to Subang which was ready for take-off. However, other flights were diverted to other departure gates.

“There were no major flight delays and the water receded once it stopped raining.”

In response, Penang Tourism Development, Heritage, Culture and Arts Exco Yeoh Soon Hin urged the relevant airport departments to take immediate maintenance action.

He also urged Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad to examine the cause of the flooding to prevent a recurrence.

“I have also met the management of Penang International Airport to request the upgrading of the facilities and services at the airport.

“I hope all departments can cooperate with the Penang state government in this.”

Source: FMT