Storm strands 10,000 passengers in Chengdu airport

CHENGDU - About 10,000 passengers have been stranded in Southwest China's Shuangliu International Airport on Wednesday after the area experienced its strongest downpours this summer, airport sources said.

Rainstorms hit the airport in Chengdu, Sichuan province, at 3:30 pm on Wednesday.

By 4 pm, 15 flights had been canceled and 25 inbound flights had had to land in airports in the cities of Luzhou, Chongqing, Guiyang and Xi'an. More than 50 outbound flights were delayed.

Only 324 of the airport's 716 inbound and outbound flights for the whole day were completed prior to the stormy weather.

Local meteorological authorities forecasted the stormy weather will continue on Wednesday night.

As of 7 pm on Wednesday, weather conditions still could not meet the requirements for flights.