London’s Heathrow Airport was closed early Friday and will remain shut through the rest of the day, bringing one of the world’s busiest airports to a halt after it lost power because of a nearby fire.
The fire at an electrical substation in western London quickly disrupted travel across the globe.
The airport, which handles 1,300 flights a day, was set to be closed all of Friday,with at least 120 flights that were headed to the airport would have to be diverted.
“We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens,” a Heathrow representative said in a statement.
Around the world, people were starting to see their plans upended.
Warren Hu, a college student in New York who was on his way to visit his girlfriend in London, texted from aboard his fight that it was already in the air when passengers were told that the flight had to return to New York. “I’m a bit surprised,” he said. “But we can find a solution, so I’m trying to stay calm.”
As the airport closed, 120 aircraft were headed there, according to Flightradar24, a flight tracking website. Airlines have begun diverting those flights to airports, including London Gatwick and Charles de Gaulle in Paris, as well as to airports in Ireland and Canada, according to the site.
British Airways, whose main hub is Heathrow, said in a statement that where possible it was redirecting flights already on their way to the airport to others in Britain.
Substation fire: Around 4 a.m. local time on Friday, London’s fire brigade said it was still trying to bring the blaze under control, five hours after it had knocked out power to Heathrow.
Power outages: Around 150 people were evacuated from the area around the substation, Pat Goulbourne, assistant commissioner at the London Fire Brigade, said in a statement. The fire, at the North Hyde substation, left more than 16,000 customers without power, according to the regional power utility, Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks.
The closure disrupts an important travel hub for Britain, Europe and the world.
Daily, an average of more than 220,000 passengers traveled through the airport last year on flights offered by 90 airlines to more than 180 destinations around the globe.
On Friday morning, planes were scheduled to arrive from as far away as Vietnam, India and Brunei, and passengers were expecting to take off for destinations like Tokyo, New York and Riyadh.
Here is what we know about Heathrow’s closure.
The problem began with a nearby fire.
Heathrow said early Friday that it had been hit by a power outage, caused by a fire at an electrical substation supplying the airport.
The London Fire Brigade said that it had been called to the fire in western London late Thursday, deploying dozens of firefighters. About 150 people were evacuated from the area.
The cause of the fire was not known, the fire brigade said.
Nearby homes and businesses were also affected, the fire brigade said. About 16,000 customers were without power early Friday, according to Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks, a British energy company.
Ripple effects will be global.
Heathrow’s closure will affect at least 1,351 flights in and out of the airport, according to Flightradar24, a flight tracking website. As the closure was announced early Friday, 120 aircraft that had been scheduled to arrive at Heathrow were in the air.
Some were diverted to alternate airports, including London Gatwick Airport, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, Flightradar24 said. Others began returning to their origins.
The disruption caused by the fire was expected to spread into Friday morning, said Pat Goulbourne, assistant commissioner at the fire brigade.
“We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens,” a Heathrow spokesperson said in a statement.
Britain’s laws protect many travelers facing disruptions.
Airlines are required to look after you if you are departing from Britain on any airline or arriving there on an E.U. or U.K. airline. If your flight is canceled, you should be offered a choice of a refund or alternate travel arrangements at the earliest opportunity, according to Britain’s Civil Aviation Authority.
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If you choose to travel at another time, they must provide you with a reasonable amount of food or drink, accommodation if you are rerouted the next day and transport to and from the accommodation.
If your flight has been canceled or diverted, check your airline for its policies.
Heathrow is the main hub for British Airways, which said that where possible it was redirecting flights already on their way to Heathrow to other airports in Britain. “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,” the airline said in a statement.
It is difficult to overestimate the importance of Heathrow as a travel hub for Britain and Europe. More than 80 airlines fly to Heathrow, and connect it to more than 180 destinations around the world. In February alone, the airport said it handled more than 5.7 million passengers, making it one of the busiest in the world.
Warren Hu, a college student in New York, texted from aboard a plane that his flight was already in the air when passengers were informed that the flight had to return to New York. He had planned to visit his girlfriend in London. “I’m a bit surprised, but we can find a solution, so I’m trying to stay calm,” he said.
The ripple effect of the closure at Heathrow Airport is already being felt across Asia, where flights headed to Heathrow had already taken off. Some flights from Singapore’s Changi Airport were diverted to London Gatwick and other European airports, according to FlightRadar24. The next flight scheduled to take off from Changi, a Singapore Airlines one, was canceled.
By 4 a.m. Friday, half of a transformer remained on fire, the London Fire Brigade said, warning that the disruptions caused by the blaze would increase into the morning.
The blaze at the North Hyde substation, around two miles north of Heathrow, left more than 16,000 customers without power, according to the regional power utility, Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks.
“This will be a prolonged incident, with crews remaining on scene throughout the night,” Pat Goulbourne, assistant commissioner at the London Fire Brigade, said in a statement. “As we head into the morning, disruption is expected to increase, and we urge people to avoid the area wherever possible.”
The London Fire Brigade said it had deployed around 70 firefighters to the substation, where a transformer was ablaze. Thick smoke was seen rising from the burning substation in a photo posted on social media by the fire brigade.
Around 150 people were evacuated, and the authorities set up a 650-foot cordon around the substation as they tried to bring the fire under control.
The cause of the fire was not yet known, the fire brigade said.
What began as a local fire at an electrical substation near Heathrow Airport has led to a disruption across the globe early Friday. The airport, one of the world’s busiest, is now closed for all of Friday.
When flights are delayed or cancelled, passengers have rights.
If a delay or cancellation is the airline’s fault, most major carriers can also rebook you on another airline. A few have this ability regardless of what led to the disruption.
