Mumbai airport reopens after rains

Mumbai’s main airport re-opened Friday, officials said, three days after the heaviest monsoon rains in a decade killed scores and caused travel mayhem across western India. Over 150 flights had been affected by the runway’s closure. “After clearing a SpiceJet aircraft, Mumbai Airport runway is back in operation,” a spokeswoman told journalists.

The death toll from a dam breach in Ratnagiri -- around 275 kilometres (170 miles) south of Mumbai -- had reached 19, officials told AFP. “We have recovered 19 bodies so far on day three of operations. Three NDRF teams are still looking for five more bodies but the operations are difficult,” National Disaster Response Force spokesman Alok Awasthy said.