Heathrow Airport to close Friday after fire knocks out power to part of London
London (AP): Britain's Heathrow Airport will be closed Friday after an electrical substation fire knocked out its power, potentially affecting hundreds of thousands of passengers who use one of Europe's biggest travel hubs.
Thousands of homes also lost power and 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 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.”
Due to a fire at an electrical substation supplying the airport, Heathrow is experiencing a significant power outage.
— Heathrow Airport (@HeathrowAirport) March 21, 2025
To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, Heathrow will be closed until 23h59 on 21 March.
Passengers are advised not to travel to the airport… pic.twitter.com/7SWNJP8ojd
It said it will provide an update on its operations when it has more information on restoring power available.
Heathrow is one of the world's busiest airports for international travel. It had its busiest January on record earlier this year, with more than 6.3 million passengers, up more than 5% for the same period last year. January also was the 11th month in a row it averaged over 200,000 passengers a day, with the airport citing transatlantic travel as a key contributor.
The U.K. government earlier this year approved building a third runway at the airport to boost the economy and connectivity to the world.
London Fire Brigade said 10 fire engines and around 70 firefighters were on the scene of the fire.
“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 minimize disruption,” Assistant Commissioner Pat Goulbourne said.
Footage posted to social media showed huge flames and large plumes of smoke coming from the facility.
đŸ“¹ POWER BLAZE IN LONDON SHUTS DOWN UK’S BUSIEST AIRPORT, HEATHROW – REPORTS
— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) March 21, 2025
Firefighters are struggling to contain a major blaze at the Hayes electrical substation, causing evacuations and widespread power outages, Sky News reported.
Videos from social media pic.twitter.com/XwfAopJYvq
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks said in a post on X the power outage affected more than 16,300 homes.
Emergency services were called to the scene at 11.23 pm Thursday. The cause of the fire is yet to be determined.
Goulbourne urged people to take safety precautions and avoid the area as crews worked to extinguish the blaze.
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Punishment for those disrupting assembly proceedings, warns Speaker UT Khader
Belagavi: Speaker U.T. Khader on Friday warned that members who disrupt Assembly proceedings by talking in their seats during debates will be made to sit in the House for an entire day as a disciplinary measure.
The warning came after the Question Hour, when Deputy Leader of the Opposition Arvind Bellad was permitted to initiate a discussion on the development of North Karnataka.
At this point, expelled BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal objected, stating that he had been seeking a debate for the past three days but had not been given an opportunity.
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Responding to the objection, Speaker Khader said Bellad had already been granted permission and assured Yatnal that he would be allowed to speak at the next opportunity. He noted that even as a serious discussion was underway, several MLAs were speaking among themselves with their microphones on, disrupting the proceedings.
Expressing displeasure over the conduct of members, Khader likened the situation to football, where players receive red, yellow, or white cards for violations. Similarly, he said, the Assembly issues warning cards to members who disturb the House. If they fail to correct themselves despite repeated warnings, they would be required to remain seated in the Assembly hall for a full day as punishment, he stated.
