The airport authority said flight operations have resumed at the temporary international terminal of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport after flooding caused by drainage disruption forced airlines to relocate temporarily.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) says flight operations have resumed at the temporary international terminal at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, after flooding disrupted operations at the facility.
Henry Agbebire, FAAN’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, disclosed this on Monday, saying the flooding was caused by drainage disruption linked to ongoing construction works at the airport.
He said the incident was quickly contained and that normal flight operations have since resumed.
“The flooding was localised and linked to ongoing construction activities affecting drainage,” Mr Agbebire said.
He added, “The situation was promptly managed through established operational contingency measures. No flights were cancelled, and passenger safety was never compromised.”
PREMIUM TIMES reported that heavy rainfall on Sunday submerged several parts of Lagos, disrupting traffic and flooding the temporary international terminal of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport. The incident forced the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria to temporarily suspend operations at the facility and relocate airlines, including Air France-KLM, Ethiopian Airlines and Fly Gabon, to Terminal Two after floodwaters affected parts of the terminal.
According to Mr Agbebire, the flooding was severe enough to interrupt airport operations and necessitated the temporary relocation of affected airlines while engineers worked to address the drainage problem.
“It was enough to disturb operations, and water flowed into the terminal. That was why the airlines affected were moved to Terminal Two while our technical team and the contractor mitigated the issue,” he said.
He said the airlines have since returned to the temporary international terminal following the restoration of normal conditions.
Mr Agbebire noted that FAAN has begun implementing measures to strengthen the airport’s drainage infrastructure to reduce the risk of similar incidents during the rainy season.
“We have commenced corrective measures to strengthen drainage and prevent a recurrence. We will continue to monitor developments, and it is something we will give priority to during this rainy season,” he said.
