Britain’s Heathrow Airport announced it will be closed all of Friday, after a huge fire at a nearby electrical substation wiped out power at the airport. The mass power outage has also impacted the local area.
Flights have been diverted all around the world and the the London Fire Brigade deployed around 70 firefighters to tackle the blaze in the west of London, the flames of which reached dramatically high against the night sky.
The airport has also said, “Passengers are advised not to travel to the airport and should contact their airline for further information. We apologise for the inconvenience.”
Friday’s closure affects at least 1,300 flights scheduled to and from Heathrow, according to flight tracker Flightradar24, and as of early Friday morning local time, 120 aircraft already in the air would need to divert to alternate airports or return to their origins.
London Heathrow is Europe’s busiest airport and the world’s fifth-busiest airport, says Reuters.
