Travellers at Paddington scramble for travel solutions as Heathrow airport shuts down

Record ID: 1984885

  • Title: Travellers at Paddington scramble for travel solutions as Heathrow airport shuts down
  • Date: 21st March 2025
  • Summary:  LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (MARCH 21, 2025) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF INFORMATION BOARDS AT LONDON'S PADDINGTON TRAIN STATION SHOWING CANCELLED TRAINS TO HEATHROW AIRPORT VARIOUS OF PASSENGER WHOSE FLIGHT WAS CANCELLED, TYLER PRIEB, STANDING AT TRAIN STATION (SOUNDBITE) (English) PASSENGER WHOSE FLIGHT FROM LONDON HEATHROW TO NASHVILLE, WHERE HE LIVES, WAS CANCELLED, 36,
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: AIRPORT BRITAIN HEATHROW UK
  • Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
  • City: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
  • Country: UK
  • Topics: Disaster/Accidents,Europe,Fires
  • Reuters ID: LVA001057821032025RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Britain's Heathrow Airport was shut on Friday (March 21) after a huge fire at a nearby electrical substation wiped out its power, disrupting flight schedules around the world.
    Around 70 firefighters were tackling the blaze in the west of London, which led to a mass power outage at Heathrow, Europe's busiest and the world's fifth-busiest airport, and also knocked out its back-up power system.
    Passengers waiting for express trains to the airport from the Paddington train station were left stranded.
    "Hopefully it will just take me an extra day to get back to my wife and my daughter, and they are probably wishing I would be home already," said passenger Tyler Prieb, whose flight to Nashville was cancelled.
    Huge orange flames and plumes of black smoke could be seen shooting into the sky. Around 150 people were evacuated from nearby buildings and thousands of properties were without power.
    The fire brigade said the cause of the fire was not known but it was now under control.
    Heathrow said the airport, which was due to handle 1,351 flights during the day, flying up to 291,000 passengers, would stay closed until midnight as it was experiencing a significant power outage.
    (Production: Marissa Davison, Vitalii Yalahuzian)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2025. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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