Published by Robert L Senior Reporter on Friday 21st March 2025, at 08:45hrs
Heathrow Airport has been forced to close until midnight tonight following a catastrophic fire at a nearby electricity substation, causing widespread travel chaos and affecting an estimated 1,357 flights.
The unprecedented shutdown has left thousands of passengers stranded and is expected to have significant ripple effects on global airline operations for days to come.
The fire, which broke out at a substation in Hayes, approximately 1.5 miles north of the airport, triggered a major power outage, necessitating the complete closure of Heathrow.
London Fire Brigade (LFB) confirmed that the blaze is now under control after deploying 10 engines and around 70 firefighters to tackle the incident, which began at 11:23 PM GMT on Thursday.
“To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we have no choice but to close Heathrow until 23h59 on 21 March 2025,” Heathrow Airport stated in an official release. “We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens.”
The impact of the closure is immense, with Flightradar24 estimating that 679 inbound and 678 outbound flights have been affected. Adding to the complexity, approximately 120 flights were already en route to Heathrow when the shutdown was announced.
While some were able to return to their departure airports, many transatlantic flights were diverted to other European hubs.
Amsterdam has received the highest number of diversions, with seven flights, while Gatwick, Frankfurt, and Shannon have each accommodated six.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, speaking to Sky News, described the fire as “catastrophic” and stated that the cause is currently unknown. Investigations are underway to determine the origin of the blaze.
Heathrow, one of the world’s busiest airports, handled a record 83.9 million passengers last year, with a plane landing or taking off roughly every 45 seconds.
The closure translates to an estimated 220,000 passengers being affected daily.
British Airways, Heathrow’s largest carrier, has urged customers to stay away from the airport.
“This will clearly have a significant impact on our operation and our customers and we’re working as quickly as possible to update them on their travel options for the next 24 hours and beyond,” the airline stated.
Gatwick Airport has confirmed it is “supporting by accepting diverted flights as required” and is operating “as normal today.”
The substation fire also caused a power outage affecting approximately 16,000 homes in the vicinity.
LFB confirmed that 29 people were evacuated from neighboring properties, but thankfully, there have been no reported casualties.
Earlier visuals from Nestles Avenue showed large flames and thick plumes of black smoke.
Passengers are advised to check with their airlines for the latest updates and to avoid traveling to Heathrow until further notice.
The airport and airlines are working to mitigate the disruption and provide alternative travel arrangements.
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