London Heathrow, the United Kingdom’s major gateway, Europe’s largest airport and one of the busiest airports in the world, has closed down indefinitely due to an overnight fire that ignited at one of the electrical facilities that provides power to the airport.
At press time, the BBC reported more than 1,350 flights have been canceled, which will have affected almost 300,000 passengers.
Reuters reported that 70 firefighters attended the fire, which has been extinguished. Emergency officials asked passengers with booked flights not to come to the airport “under any circumstances.” The BBC added that Heathrow does have backup power systems, but rebooting them safely across the whole airport will take time.
Heathrow manages approximately almost half a million flights a year. In 2024, 83.9 million passenger a year used Heathrow, according to a January report from business advisory Frontier Economics. Approximately one-fifth of contributions to U.K. gross domestic product comes through the airport.
Heathrow's air traffic is so high that connecting planes can't all be diverted to nearby airports, such as London Gatwick or London Stanstead, which are sizable airports in their own right.
The last time Heathrow closed completely was in April 2010 during the eruption of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull.
Hundreds of hotels are close to London Heathrow and cater to those coming to and from the airport.
Thousands of hotel check-ins have not happened, visa processing delays have kept global passengers stuck at Heathrow and several neighboring hotels have reported they have no power.
Arora is the largest owner-operator in the Heathrow market, and its hotels there include the 710-room Renaissance London Heathrow; 605-room Sofitel London Heathrow; 464-room Radisson Blu Hotel, London Heathrow; 457-room Holiday Inn Express London Heathrow Terminal 4; 369-room Hilton Garden Inn London Heathrow Terminal 2; and the 304-room Crowne Plaza London Heathrow Terminal 4.
A call to Arora had not been returned by press time.