Heathrow airport has been closed until midnight after a fire broke out at a nearby substation, leaving it without electricity.

An estimated 1,300 flights and thousands of passengers have been affected, along with about 16,000 homes and businesses around that part of west London.

About 150 people have been evacuated from surrounding properties. London Fire Brigade sent ten fire engines and at least 70 firefighters to the scene.

“This will be a prolonged incident, with crews remaining on scene throughout the night,” said Assistant Commissioner Pat Goulbourne.

Gatwick Airport was among those taking some diverted flights.

A Heathrow spokesman said: “Heathrow is experiencing a significant power outage across the airport due to a large fire at a nearby electrical substation.

“Whilst fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored

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

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

“We will provide an update when more information on the resumption of operations is available.

“We know this will be disappointing for passengers and we want to reassure that we are working as hard as possible to resolve the situation.”

The substation is owned by Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks. The cause of the blaze is not known.