NEW DELHI: The national capital on Saturday experienced an unprecedented nine-hour period of dense fog with zero visibility, marking the longest such occurrence this season, as reported by meteorological authorities. The severe conditions caused disruptions to 81 train services and forced 15 flights to divert, officials confirmed.
“Zero visibility prevailed for nine hours at Palam between 6 pm and 3 am (UTC), marking the longest spell of the season,” IMD said.
At Safdarjung, the city’s main weather station, zero visibility conditions persisted for eight hours.
The IMD reported that Delhi registered a maximum temperature of 20 degrees Celsius, slightly above normal by 0.7 degrees, while the minimum temperature reached 7.8 degrees Celsius, exceeding the seasonal average by 0.9 degrees. Humidity levels fluctuated between 96 and 100 per cent throughout the day.
The forecast for Sunday indicates partly cloudy conditions with southeast winds below 4 kmph during morning hours. Widespread smog and moderate fog are anticipated, with some areas experiencing dense fog in the morning. Wind patterns are expected to shift, reaching 8-10 kmph from the southeast in the afternoon, before declining to under 6 kmph during evening and night hours.
Evening and night conditions are likely to bring smog or shallow to moderate fog. Temperature predictions indicate a maximum of 18 degrees Celsius and a minimum of 10 degrees Celsius.
Over 400 flights delayed as dense fog hit operations
The Delhi airport experienced significant disruptions today due to dense fog and low visibility conditions, marking the second consecutive day of operational challenges. During the early hours, specifically between 12.15 am and 1.30 am, 19 flights had to be diverted, comprising 13 domestic, four international and two non-scheduled flights.
The adverse weather conditions led to the cancellation of more than 45 flights, affecting both Delhi-bound flights and those heading to other destinations.
According to the flight monitoring platform Flightradar24.com, the airport recorded delays for more than 400 flights throughout the day.
The Indira Gandhi International Airport reported zero visibility at 7 am due to very dense fog, with Runway Visual Range measurements between 100-250 metres under CAT III conditions.
These severe conditions with CAT III implementation have been continuous since 11:30 pm on Friday, according to meteorological officials.
The airport authorities advised via X, “While landing and takeoffs continue at Delhi airport, flights that are not CAT III compliant may get affected. Passengers are requested to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information. Any inconvenience caused is deeply regretted.”
CAT III systems enable aircraft operations in poor visibility situations.
Northern Railway reported delays affecting 59 trains by up to six hours and 22 trains by approximately eight hours. Concurrently, Delhi’s air quality remained at ‘very poor’ levels. The CPCB data showed Delhi’s 24-hour average AQI at 378.
The AQI scale categorises readings as follows: 0-50 ‘good’, 51-100 ‘satisfactory’, 101-200 ‘moderate’, 201-300 ‘poor’, 301-400 ‘very poor’, and 401-500 ‘severe’.
