Britain’s Heathrow Airport closes Friday after large fire causes ‘significant power outage’

Britain’s Heathrow Airport closes Friday after large fire causes ‘significant power outage’


A plane taking off from Heathrow Airport in the United Kingdom.

Tim Ireland | Xinhua | Getty Images

Britain’s Heathrow Airport closed on Friday after a fire at a nearby electrical substation caused a power outage, airport officials said.

“Heathrow is experiencing a significant power outage across the airport due to a large fire at a nearby electrical substation. Whilst fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored,” a Heathrow spokesperson said.

“We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens,” the spokesperson said.

The airport will remain closed until at least 11:59 p.m. local time on Friday.

Airport officials said they will update travelers “when more information on the resumption of operations is available.” Travelers can check Heathrow Airport’s website or social media platforms, including X.

Heathrow is the largest airport in the United Kingdom. It is also one of the busiest two-runway airports in the world, with an estimated 1,300 take-offs and landings occurring at the airport per day, according to its website.

“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 spokesperson said.

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