BREAKINGBREAKING,
London airport says it will close until midnight on Friday for the safety of passengers and workers.
The United Kingdom’s Heathrow Airport has announced it will close until midnight due to a power outage, throwing travel plans into chaos.
Europe’s busiest airport said on Friday that it had suffered a “significant” power failure due to a fire at an electrical substation supplying the facility.
“To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, Heathrow will be closed until 23h59 on 21 March,” Heathrow Airport said in a post on X.
“Passengers are advised not to travel to the airport and should contact their airline for further information. We apologise for the inconvenience.”
Flight tracking website FlightRadar24 said the shutdown would affect “at least” 1,351 flights.
There were 120 aircraft in the air set to be diverted to alternate airports or return to their origin early at the time of the announcement, according to FlightRadar24.
Heathrow regularly ranks about the top five busiest airports worldwide.
In 2024, the airport handled nearly 84 million passengers, the largest number on record.
London Fire Brigade said that it had deployed 10 engines and about 70 firefighters to a fire in the vicinity of the airport.
“We are on scene working to bring the fire under control,” the fire service said on X. “A cordon has been put in place as a precaution – please avoid the area.”
More to follow…