Massive fire engulfs London substation, Heathrow Airport to remain closed; Capital knocked out of power
PTC News Desk: London's Heathrow airport will remain closed till midnight after a massive fire in a substation in the western part of the city led to a "significant power outage" and left over 16,000 homes without electricity.
About 150 people had to be evacuated after a transformer within an electrical substation caught fire in west London.
“To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we have no choice but to close Heathrow” for the full day on Friday, the airport's statement 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 statement further said that further update on operations will be provided as soon as information regarding restoration of power is available.
“The fire has caused a power outage affecting a large number of homes and local businesses, and we are working closely with our partners to minimise disruption,” Assistant Commissioner Pat Goulbourne said.
The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.
- With inputs from agencies
