Authorities at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) here, Nepal’s only international airport, have been lately forced to delay international flights, both arriving and departing, due to a huge number of earthworms crawling on the runway.
Airport authorities here said almost all international flights were delayed Tuesday and Wednesday due to the high presence of the earthworms on the runway causing at least an hour’s delay in flight take-offs.“We are facing trouble after a huge number of earthworms appeared on the runway,” Rishikesh Sharma, TIA general manager, said adding that even the use of chemicals to drive away the earthworms from the runway did not work.
Usually, when there is heavy rain in the night and a sunny morning the following day, thousands of earthworms cover the runway delaying flights by at least one hour. A number of domestic flights also suffered delay due to the earthworms.The TIA did not permit any airline to take off or land when the earthworms covered the runway. Only when the runway was cleared did it permit flights to operate.
“Everyday we are clearing the bushes near the runway but the situation is the same. Initially, we thought it was just a normal problem and can be cleared. But, after the rainy season reached its peak, we are facing trouble on daily basis,” Sharma added.