Fire near London Heathrow Airport: See Photos
London's Heathrow Airport was closed on Friday, March 21, after an electrical substation fire nearby knocked out its power. [Photos: Agencies]
Thousands of homes also lost power and about 150 people were evacuated after a transformer within an electrical substation caught fire in west London.
Footage posted to social media showed huge flames and large plumes of smoke coming from the facility.
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks said the power outage affected more than 16,300 homes. Emergency services were called to the scene at 11.23pm (London time) Thursday.
London Fire Brigade said 10 fire engines and around 70 firefighters were on the scene of the fire, which started late Thursday night.
To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we have no choice but to close Heathrow for the full day Friday, the statement by world's second busiest airport said.
The fire continued to smolder after daybreak, with firefighters actively trying to arrest the flames.
A British government minister says the catastrophic fire knocked out a backup generator as well as the electrical substation that supplies power to Heathrow Airport.
The closure of Heathrow Airport due to a power outage would likely to be considered a force majeure event. It could mean passengers may not be entitled to a compensation: Spanish Airlines Association chief Javier Gandara