London’s Heathrow Airport will be shut down until at least Saturday because of a fire at a nearby electrical substation that supplies the airport with power, the airport said in a statement on social media.

The statement added that said there was a “significant power outage across the airport” and “we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored”.

Passengers have been warned to stay away.

“To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we have no choice but to close Heathrow until 23h59 on 21 March 2025,” the statement added.

“We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens.”

Tracking site Flightradar24 estimates at least 1,351 flights in and out of Heathrow will be affected today, including around 120 already in the air this morning.