Heathrow Airport will be closed all day Friday due to a “significant” power loss caused by a fire at a nearby electrical substation that serves the airport.
The UK’s biggest airport has issued a warning of “significant disruption” in the coming days and advised passengers not to go “under any circumstances” until it reopened.
“To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we have no choice but to close Heathrow until 23:59 on 21 March 2025,” according to a representative.
“We know this will be disappointing for passengers and we want to reassure that we are working as hard as possible to resolve the situation,” the spokespersons stated.
“While fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not know when power will be reliably restored,” the Heathrow spokeswoman stated.
The airport apologized for the interruption and recommended travelers to contact their flights for more information.
Heathrow is the UK’s busiest aviation hub, processing over 1,300 landings and takeoffs every day. According to the most recent figures, it received a record 83.9 million passengers via its terminals last year.
At least 1,351 flights to and from Heathrow will be impacted by Friday’s closure, according to flight tracking website Flightradar24, with about 120 affected planes already in the air as of early this morning.
The group had crossed passport check and security in good time, and while they were queuing for breakfast, a service member exclaimed, “All flights to Heathrow are cancelled.” A peek at the departure board verified the situation.
When the passengers enquired why, they were told that all flights to Heathrow on Friday had been canceled owing to a fire.
They were then gathered with 50 other travelers before walking back through passport check to re-enter Greece.
Many travelers intended to take a connecting aircraft to Edinburgh, Glasgow, or Aberdeen. They are considering rebooking through other European destinations at the last minute for an unknown fee.
A fire at a substation in Hayes, west London, has left thousands of houses without electricity and forced around 150 people to flee from nearby premises.
Emergency services were dispatched to the location at 23:23 on Thursday, and social media footage showed towering flames and smoke pouring from the substation overnight.
The cause of the fire has yet to be identified.
The London Fire Brigade (LFB) reported that half of a transformer within the substation was still on fire at 04:08.
The LFB reported that ten fire engines and around 70 firemen were dispatched to combat the incident.
As a precaution, a 200-meter cordon has been established, and homeowners have been warned to keep doors and windows closed due to a “significant amount of smoke.”
According to Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks, more than 16,300 houses have lost power as a result of the incident.
“We’re aware of a widespread power cut affecting many of our customers around the Hayes, Hounslow and surrounding areas,” the statement said.
The LFB stated that it had received approximately 200 calls regarding the incident.
“This is a highly visible and significant incident, and our firefighters are working tirelessly under difficult conditions to get the fire under control as soon as possible,” said LFB Assistant Commissioner Pat Goulborne.
“This will be a prolonged incident, with crews remaining on scene throughout the night,” he said.
“As we head into the morning, disruption is expected to increase, and we urge people to avoid the area wherever possible.”
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