At least 1,350 flights to and from London’s Heathrow Airport have been canceled after a fire at a power substation caused a major blackout, forcing the temporary closure of the busiest airport in Europe.
Passengers reported that power has been partially restored at one of the two affected terminals, which were left in darkness after the fire.
Earlier in the day, firefighters confirmed that Terminals 2 and 4 had lost electricity due to the incident. Heathrow officials halted all incoming and outgoing flights until at least midnight.
Power Restoration and Ongoing Disruptions
The electricity distribution company announced that it had found a temporary solution by reconfiguring the grid, allowing partial power restoration at Heathrow. However, it remains unclear whether the entire airport’s power supply has been fully restored.
“We do not yet have a timeline for full restoration, and we expect disruptions to continue for several days,” the airport stated.
Concerns Over Infrastructure Resilience
While the exact cause of the fire remains unknown, analysts warn that the incident raises concerns about Britain’s ability to withstand attacks or natural disasters that could damage critical infrastructure such as communication networks and power grids.
