 "London’s Heathrow Airport fire: Counter-terror police called in for probe, says report")
Authorities in London have roped in the counterterrorism police to lead the investigation into a fire at Heathrow Airport that forced its closure and disrupted flight operations worldwide.
While the Metropolitan Police Force said on Friday that there are “no indications of foul play” at the moment, the Counter Terrorism Command was leading the investigation to “retain an open mind”.
Firefighters were called to the “highly visible” blaze at the substation shortly after 2320 GMT on Thursday and around 70 were sent to battle the fire, which was brought under control by around 0800 GMT.
A statement by the police given to Newsweek said, “Given the location of the substation and the impact this incident has had on critical national infrastructure, the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command is now leading enquiries.”
Concerns are growing over potential Russian sabotage operations in the U.K. and across Europe as Moscow continues its war in Ukraine. In recent years, Russian agents have been connected to several incidents, including a warehouse fire in London.
‘Clear planning failure’
The head of the airline industry trade association IATA, Willie Walsh said the power outage that caused the fire was a “clear planning failure” by the air hub.
“How is it that critical infrastructure – of national and global importance – is totally dependent on a single power source without an alternative. If that is the case – as it seems – then it is a clear planning failure by the airport,” the IATA director general said on X.
What caused the fire?
UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has said it is “too early” to determine what caused the huge fire but promised that the government would do all it could to restore power to Heathrow quickly, as questions were raised about the airport’s “resilience”.
Testimonies from residents in West London reveal that the fire was discovered following a large explosion that led to a huge fireball and clouds of thick smoke after a substation near the airport caught on fire.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsAs the scale of the disruption began to emerge, Miliband faced questions about how one fire could shut down an entire airport.
He said the electricity distribution network National Grid had told him they had not seen “anything like the scale” of what happened.
Flights cancelled, diverted
Around 120 Heathrow-bound planes were in the air when the closure was announced, according to Flightradar24.
Airport authorities said they “expect significant disruption” over the coming days.
The UK’s second busiest airport, Gatwick, said it would accept some flights from Heathrow. Others were diverted to European airports including Shannon in southwestern Ireland, Frankfurt, and Paris Charles de Gaulle.
British Airways said the closure of its main hub would have a “significant impact” on its operations and customers.
“We’re working as quickly as possible to update them on their travel options for the next 24 hours and beyond,” it said.
With inputs from agencies
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