Power outage repercussions at Beirut's airport are being addressed: Civil Aviation

BEIRUT — After the Rafik Hariri International Airport (RHIA) experienced hours of electricity outage probably caused by the current heatwave affecting Lebanon, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation stated on Wednesday that Public Works and Transport Minister Fayez Rasamni is closely coordinating with Energy and Water Minister Joe Saddi and Électricité du Liban to "address the repercussions of the outage and implement radical solutions that ensure a stable and reliable power supply."

Some accounts reported temporary power and air-conditioning outages. A video posted by the Instagram page "alarabiya.lebanon," affiliated with the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya news network, featured long queues of people suffering from heat at the airport, sparking condemnations from users in the comments section.

"Like every summer..." one user claimed, while another wrote: "There is no generator? Even with the highest [most expensive] plane tickets, the service is the worst." However, some downplayed the severity of what happened; for instance, a user said that she was just at the airport and "everything went so smoothly."

On Wednesday, the Civil Aviation confirmed the power outage: "Amid a severe heatwave, and with the airport recording its peak travel season this year, Rafik Hariri International Airport experienced a power outage that affected its air conditioning capacity, at a time when the number of departures rose to around 20,000 passengers per day, nearly double last month's average, while the number of arrivals reached around 14,000 per day."

"This coincided with the departure of a large numbers of passengers to Iraq for the Arbaeen pilgrimage, with around 12,000 people expected to leave this week and return at the end of it, in addition to the arrival of around 8,000 Iraqi tourists, taking advantage of offers launched by airlines to fill incoming flights," the Civil Aviation statement added. "In light of this exceptional pressure on airport facilities, Public Works and Transport Minister Fayez Rasamni is coordinating closely with Energy and Water Minister Joe Saddi and Électricité du Liban to address the repercussions of the outage and implement radical solutions that ensure a stable and reliable power supply," reads the statement.

Moreover, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation expressed its "regret for any inconvenience or delay caused to passengers or airport staff" and affirmed its "cooperation with the relevant authorities to ensure the stability of operations at the airport." "The Directorate also appreciates the understanding and patience of travelers and commends the exceptional efforts made by airport staff, security agencies, and service providers during these difficult hours," the statement concludes.