Heathrow returns to full operation - Fire was not intentional, electrical substation equipment is being investigated
London's Heathrow Airport has returned to full operation after being closed for about 18 hours. Authorities said the fire at an electrical substation was not intentional and that they were investigating what they believe was faulty equipment.
London's Heathrow Airport returned to full operations on Saturday after a nearly day-long shutdown caused by a fire at an electrical substation. But airlines warned that the severe disruption would last for days as they scrambled to relocate planes and crews and get passengers to their destinations.
Anxious passengers, angry airlines and worried politicians are demanding answers about how an apparently accidental fire could shut down Europe's busiest air hub.
"We have hundreds of extra staff in our terminals and have increased the number of flights on Saturday to facilitate around 10,000 extra passengers travelling through the airport," Heathrow said in a statement.
British Airways, the largest airline operating at Heathrow Airport, said it operated about 85% of its scheduled flights on Saturday. More than 1,300 flights were cancelled and about 200,000 people were stranded on Friday after an overnight fire at an electrical substation about 2 miles (3 kilometers) from the airport knocked out power to Heathrow and more than 60,000 homes. The fire was brought under control after seven hours, but the airport was closed for almost 18 hours.
Police said they do not consider the fire to be deliberate, while the London Fire Brigade announced that the investigation would focus on electrical distribution equipment at the substation.
However, the huge impact of the fire has led authorities to face criticism over Britain's aging infrastructure. Heathrow is one of the world's busiest airports for international travel, handling some 83.9 million passengers last year.
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