Britain's Heathrow Airport has shut after a huge fire at a nearby substation knocked out its power, stranding passengers around the world.
Huge orange flames and plumes of black smoke shot into the sky around 2300 GMT on Thursday as a blaze engulfed the substation, cutting the power supply and back-up system for Europe's busiest and the world's fifth-busiest airport.
#fire #heathrowairport #heathrow #airport
Huge orange flames and plumes of black smoke shot into the sky around 2300 GMT on Thursday as a blaze engulfed the substation, cutting the power supply and back-up system for Europe's busiest and the world's fifth-busiest airport.
#fire #heathrowairport #heathrow #airport
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NewsTranscript
00:00A fire at an electrical substation near Heathrow Airport in West London has caused major disruption,
00:08leading to power outages and mass flight cancellations.
00:11It left nearly 5,000 homes without power and forced the evacuation of about 150 people.
00:20Heathrow will remain closed until midnight local time.
00:24Flight tracking website Flightradar24 says that over 1,300 flights will be affected,
00:30impacting travel across Europe and beyond.
00:34About 290,000 passengers have been due to fly through the airport on Friday.
00:39Stranded travellers are scrambling for alternatives.
01:09Heathrow is urging travellers to stay away all Friday and to check with their airlines
01:30for any further information.
01:32Many inbound flights have been diverted to other European cities.
01:37Experts say the costs could reach millions of dollars.