2023 Chennai Airport Video Viral as Recently Flooded Mumbai Airport

Several parts of Maharashtra are currently experiencing heavy rainfall, especially Mumbai, which has recorded its wettest August in the last five years. The Mumbai International Airport has also been heavily affected due to continuous rain.

Amidst this situation, a video is going viral claiming to show severe flooding at Mumbai Airport. 

Fact Crescendo received several requests to verify this claim via our WhatsApp Tipline (9049053770). 

After verification, we found that the viral video is old and unrelated to Mumbai. It is actually from the 2023 floods at Chennai Airport. 

WHAT’S THE CLAIM?

A 25-second video shows a flooded runway with parked aircraft surrounded by water.

Social media users are sharing it with the claim that these are “visuals from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (Mumbai).”

FACT-CHECK

We performed a reverse image search on keyframes from the video and found that the same clip has been available online since 2023.

Times Now had shared this video on 6 December 2023, reporting: “Runway at Chennai airport flooded amid heavy rainfall.”

In December 2023, Cyclone Michaung brought heavy rain and severe flooding to Chennai and nearby areas. 

One of the worst-hit locations was Chennai International Airport, where the runway was completely submerged, forcing authorities to suspend flight operations for several hours.

According to The Hindu, “Nearly 1,500 people are stranded at Chennai airport as flight operations were suspended on December 5 as heavy rain and winds lashed the city due to Cyclone Michaung.”

In the first few seconds of the viral video, a yellow board is visible with these coordinates written on it:

• 12° 59′ 5.9″ N
• 80° 9′ 47.686″ E

These coordinates match Chennai International Airport, which you can verify on Google Maps.

What’s the situation in Mumbai?

Between 15 and 19 August, Mumbai received 837.3 mm of rainfall in just five days. On two of those days, the city recorded more than 200 mm of rain each, leading to severe waterlogging and traffic disruptions.

There have been 11 go-arounds, 5 flight diversions, and around 21 flight delays so far, Times of India reports.

CONCLUSION

The viral video does not show flooding at Mumbai Airport. It is from the 2023 Chennai Airport floods during Cyclone Michaung.

Sharing old and unrelated videos during natural disasters can cause panic and hinder relief efforts. Always verify before sharing.