A fire that erupted in a transformer within an electrical substation in Hayes, north of Heathrow, around midnight has caused significant disruptions at one of the world's busiest airports. The mishap led to a lockdown of Heathrow for several hours. In addition, this disruption impacted the supply chain for millions of dollars of goods and caused more than 63,000 households to lose power. Despite having three electricity substations, each with a backup capable of supplying the airport's power needs, the fire interrupted operations, prompting a government-led investigation.
Heathrow operates on the razor’s edge using only three electricity substations with quick shutdown backup systems. The abrupt halt was not caused by the power supply, the airport’s chief executive Thomas Woldbye subsequently assured. He blamed the shutdown on the time it takes to change power. The destroyed substation had to be made up by the other two which were operational.
"It's fuelling systems, it's bridges, it's escalators, all of these systems have to be brought back up [and] tested to ensure they are safe." – Thomas Woldbye
Emergency backup generation at Heathrow operated as intended. Woldbye continued by lauding a local data center that entirely covers its data sourcing with power. This center, a district biomass power generator, produces heat and electricity directly to Terminal Two. Even with abundant money and manpower, the shutdown continued as long as it took to seamlessly shift the power supply—even move it if needed.
The incident has received the attention of government authorities, resulting in the government ordering a six-week legislative investigation. This is to be guided by the new National Energy System Operator (Neso), led by former Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly. The first results of the new Neso report are expected in May.
"Given Heathrow's size and operational complexity, safely restarting operations after a disruption of this magnitude was a significant challenge." – Heathrow spokeswoman
The fire’s effect on Heathrow was huge. Hundreds of interdependent systems all over the airport needed to be shut down safely and then later rebooted in orderly succession. This extensive process lengthened the time it took to reopen the airport once the fire was put out.
"Hundreds of critical systems across the airport were required to be safely powered down and then safely and systematically rebooted." – Heathrow spokeswoman
The airport’s new management was under attack for what some perceived to be a lack of adequate planning. Willie Walsh described the event as "a clear planning failure by the airport." Heidi Alexander questioned the confidence in Heathrow's management team, stating that those responsible need to assess their effectiveness in handling such incidents.
"The individuals who need to ask themselves whether they have full confidence in Heathrow management are the Heathrow board." – Heidi Alexander
Woldbye is looking forward to addressing the issues mentioned by senior public servants. He commits to maintaining transparency as he leads the response to this unparalleled crisis.
"happy" to answer to the prime minister – Thomas Woldbye
Heathrow's spokeswoman emphasized that the fire was an unforeseen incident that couldn't have been anticipated. She accompanied that with a promise that steps have been taken to avoid a repeat of such an event in the future.
"confirms that this was an unprecedented incident and that it would not have been possible for Heathrow to operate uninterrupted." – Heathrow spokeswoman