Disasters & Accidents

All flights canceled as storm pounds New Zealand’s capital

Sydney, Australia, Jul 21 (EFE).- New Zealand authorities canceled all flights to and from the Wellington Airport on Thursday due to heavy rains and strong winds that caused flooding in the capital.

The country’s national weather authority, MetService, has forecast winds of up to 130 kilometers per hour (81 miles per hour) and waves of up to 9 meters (30 feet) in Wellington on Thursday, with the possibility of snowfall in mountainous locations.

“Most flights to and from Wellington Airport are suspended and/or delayed due to the adverse weather until further notice. Some jet flights may be able to land and take off today, but this is weather dependent,” the Wellington Airport said on Twitter.

The airport also urged passengers to contact the airlines directly for information.

In an earlier tweet, the airport said that all flights in and out of the airport had been cancelled as “high winds are making it unsafe for baggage handlers to operate.”

Chaos ensued at the airport following the announcement with thousands of domestic passengers left stranded and international flights diverted to other parts of the country.

Rocks and trees knocked over by the powerful storm also blocked roads while maritime movements were disrupted in this part of New Zealand’s east coast.

Powerful waves that crashed onto roads led to some traffic accidents.

Bad weather has also affected the city of Christchurch and the Banks Peninsula on the South Island since Wednesday.

Flooding in these areas led the authorities to declare a state of emergency in some of the affected places on Wednesday night.

The storm, which will lash the country until the weekend, has also caused some landslides and left hundreds of people without power. EFE

wat/pd/lds

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