Luton Airport fire – live: Flights suspended for most of day as 40,000 passengers affected
Airport suspends all flights until 3pm on Wednesday as up to 1,200 cars damaged in fire
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Up to 40,000 passengers have been affected by flight cancellations after a large fire broke out at one of London’s Luton Airport’s car parks.
The airport has now suspended all flights until at least 3pm, as firefighters remain at the site of blaze that broke out just before 9pm.
The newly-built car park building at the airport’s Terminal 2 has partially collapsed, the Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service said. It was not known if any passengers were trapped on the tarmac, inside the airport or in the Terminal 2 car park.
The fire service said it was called to the incident just before 9pm and over 10 fire engines were at the scene. It added that 80 per cent of one of the car park’s third floors was impacted by the blaze.
Up to 1,200 vehicles may have been in the car park at the time of the fire and subsequently damaged.
In a statement posted to X on Wednesday morning the airport added: “Passengers are advised not to travel to the airport at this time as access remains severely restricted.”
Luton airport on course to reopen at 3pm
Officials have confirmed to The Independent that arrivals and departures will resume at Luton airport at 3pm. By that stage 120 outbound flights are likely to have been cancelled – though some airlines may hold earlier flights to depart after operations start up.
Access for passengers and staff remains difficult, with the entire central area at Luton airport cordoned off. It is not clear when passengers will be allowed through to begin formalities.
A temporary drop-off zone will be installed at the mid-term car park, close to the Holiday Inn Express, a 10-minute walk from the airport terminal. Buses may provide a shuttle service.
The Independent understands that airlines such as Ryanair and Wizz Air will despatch aircraft to Luton ahead of the 3pm reopening.
No sprinklers in car park
There were no sprinklers in the Luton Airport car park that collapsed due to a huge blaze, fire chief says..
Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service told reporters at the scene: “We are already talking to the airport about ensuring that any future, and the existing, car parks have sprinklers fitted because this building is not sprinkler protected.”
He added: “Sprinklers may have made a positive impact on this incident.”
Ramp to be put in place for exit route
A ramp is currently being installed in the collapsed car park to allow safe exit for undamaged cars.
Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, said the fire at Luton Airport has been “stood down from a major incident”.
He told reporters at the scene that a ramp is being installed “into the unaffected car park because the normal exit route is not safe to take vehicles out”.
He went on: “We’ve currently got four fire appliances and a couple of other specialist crews but we are very much focused on getting a handover and getting this airport open as quickly as we can.”
He said there are “just shy of 1,500” vehicles in the affected car park.
He added: “There is a substantial number that are not damaged and our focus as well is can we remove those vehicles safely without causing any danger to the responders?”
Today: Ask Simon Calder anything as Luton Airport fire disrupts journeys for 30,000 passengers
The Independent’s travel expert Simon Calder will be answering your questions live from Luton Airport at 2pm today.
Unhandled: H5
Ask Simon Calder anything as Luton Airport fire disrupts journeys
The Independent’s travel expert Simon Calder will answer your questions live from Luton Airport
Tourists sleep on the floor amid cancellation chaos
A Polish family who came on holiday to London have told how they slept on the floor at Luton Airport after a fire at a multi-storey car park caused flight cancellations.
Gregorz Szmit, 46, said their flight to Gdansk should have departed at 9.50pm on Tuesday and is now scheduled to leave at 7.30pm on Wednesday.
Mr Szmit, speaking from the terminal building where he is waiting with his wife and their two sons aged seven and 15, said: “We were on holiday for five days to visit London – British Museum, Trafalgar Square. This is difficult, I must say.”
He added:“This is our first journey to England, to London. It’s been an adventure.”
Ambulance Service releases statement
It went on: “We assessed five people suffering from smoke inhalation at the scene.
“Three firefighters and one member of airport staff were transported to Luton and Dunstable Hospital.
“One firefighter was discharged at the scene.”
In relation to the Luton Airport car park fire, East of England Ambulance Service said in a statement it sent two ambulances, seven hazardous area response team vehicles and ambulance officer vehicles to the scene of the Luton Airport fire.
Brand-new car park ‘may need to be demolished’
The fire inside the car park at the heart of Luton airport was so intense that the whole structure may need to be demolished – with up to 1,500 vehicles still inside it.
A senior fire officer has told The Independent that the extreme temperatures during the blaze will have weakened the multi-storey car park so much that attempting to recover vehicles could be deemed too dangerous.
“They’ll probably fly a drone around to assess the damage,” they said.
“But once steel gets above 600 degrees [C] it become brittle. It was a lot more than 600 degrees in there.”
Some vehicles appear undamaged and were some distance from the worst of the fire damage. But if a decision is taken to demolish the structure they will be lost.
Demolition itself will prove extremely complex due to the car park’s proximity to one of the busiest airport terminals in the UK, together with the main access road and live aircraft taxiways.
Airlines release statements after car park inferno
Major airlines EasyJet, Ryanair and Wizz Air have all released statements on Wednesday afternoon ahead of Luton Airport’s attempts to reopen.
An EasyJet spokesperson said their flights were “currently unable to operate as planned” and say they are doing “all possible” to minimise the impact on customers.
Meanwhile, Ryanair say that affected passenfers will be advised via email, Push and SMS as soon as possible but “regret to advise passengers of possible delays or cancellations on flights to/from Luton.”
Wizz Air similarly told customers that they would be provided updates on their flight via email and SMS and apologised for the situation that was “beyond our control”.
Flights are expected to begin departing from Luton Airport at 3pm today.
First passengers re-entering airport
Luton Airport said it expects flights to resume at 3pm and passengers are now re-entering the terminal.
They said in a statement: “Following last night’s car fire in Terminal Car Park 2, emergency services have now downgraded the incident but remain on the scene as a precaution.
“The teams have worked hard to get the airport operational, with the first passengers now re-entering the terminal and the first flights expected to depart from 3pm.
“For those arriving by car, the long and mid-stay car parks are fully operational, and a temporary drop-off area has been established in the mid-stay car park.
“For those travelling to the airport by rail, the Dart shuttle remains out of service with replacement buses in operation.
“Additional staff remain on hand to assist passengers across the airport.”
No room at the (Holiday) Inn – or any other hotels in the Luton area
Airport hotels in the Luton area are reportedly fully booked as passengers remain unceratin of their travel plans.
The Luton Airport Holiday Inn had this sign posted on their door.
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