Heathrow Airport Closes All Day Over Power Outage

(MENAFN- Colombo Gazette) Heathrow Airport will be closed throughout Friday over a“significant” power outage linked to a fire at a nearby electrical substation that supplies it.

The airport, which is the UK's busiest, has warned of“significant disruption” over the coming days and told passengers not to travel“under any circumstances” until it reopens.

The fire at the substation in Hayes, west London, has left thousands of homes without power and 150 people have been evacuated from surrounding properties.

Emergency services were first called to the scene at 23:23 GMT, and video shared on social media showed tall flames and smoke billowing from the substation overnight.

At least 1,351 flights to and from Heathrow will be affected on Friday, flight tracking website Flightradar24 said on X , with some 120 affected aircraft already in the air when the closure was announced.

Part of a transformer within the substation is still alight, according to London Fire Brigade (LFB). The cause of the fire is yet to be determined.

Ten fire engines and about 70 firefighters have been sent to tackle the blaze, LFB said.

A 200-metre cordon has been put in place as a precaution, and local residents have been advised to keep doors and windows closed because of a“significant amount of smoke”.

The brigade added it led 29 people to safety from nearby properties.

Asst Cmmr Pat Goulbourne said firefighters“have made good progress in containing the fire and preventing further spread”.

“As we head into the morning, disruption is expected to increase, and we urge people to avoid the area wherever possible.”

More than 16,300 homes have lost power in a large-scale outage cause by the fire, energy supplier Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks said on X.

LFB said power has since been restored to some properties.

“We're aware of a widespread power cut affecting many of our customers around the Hayes, Hounslow and surrounding areas,” it added.

A Heathrow Airport spokesperson said:“To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we have no choice but to close Heathrow until 23:59 on 21 March 2025.”

“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,” they added.

“Whilst fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored,” the Heathrow spokesperson said.

The airport has apologised for the disruption and has advised passengers to contact their airlines for further information.

Heathrow is the UK's largest aviation hub, handling about 1,300 landings and take-offs each day. A record 83.9 million passengers passed through its terminals last year, according to its latest data.

Seven United Airlines flights bound for Heathrow have returned to their origin or been diverted to other airports, the US-based carrier told BBC News.

Australia's flagship Qantas airline told BBC News two of its flights have been diverted from London to Paris. (BBC

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