Luton Airport fire updates — Flights resume after blaze hospitalises 5 as fire chief addresses rumours EV caused inferno
FLIGHTS from Luton Airport have resumed after a blaze ripped through one of its multi-storey car parks last night.
Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue service confirmed a major incident had occurred at 9:38pm last night, with at least 15 fire engines and 100 firefighters attending the scene. Up to 1,200 vehicles have been damaged in the blaze, with emergency services still on the scene.
Now, have resumed after cancellations plunged thousands into chaos after a Ryanair flight heading to Cork left at roughly 3:30pm.
Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, this morning explained how it is believed the fire started.
He said: “We have no intelligence at this stage to suggest that this was anything other than an accidental fire that started in one of the vehicles that had not long arrived at the airport. It was not an EV. This was a diesel powered vehicle.”
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Main roads in surrounding area now open
London Luton Airport have confirmed in a recent statement that roads around the surrounding area have now re-opened.
The statement read: "The runway is now open, and flights are beginning to arrive and depart.
"Main roads around the area have also re-opened, but delays are expected on the airport approach.
"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.
"Those with queries relating to a parked vehicle or future booking in Terminal Car Park 2 and Terminal Car Park 1, should contact [email protected] for support.
"Passengers should contact their airline for information regarding their flight."
In pictures: Blaze ripped through Luton Airport car park
Fires raged at Luton Airport car park last night, leading all flights to be cancelled until at least 3pm today.
What should I do if my flight is cancelled or delayed?
Luton Airport has advised passengers to contact their airline directly regarding their flights.
The best way to check if your flights are cancelled or are affected by delays is to locate to the website of the airport you are flying out of and find your flight number.
If your flight is covered under UK law, your airline must let you choose between either getting a refund or an alternative flight, regardless of how far in advance the cancellation was made.
Similarly, under UK law, airlines may have to provide compensation if your flight arrives at its destination more than three hours late.
Holidaymakers ‘frustrated and upset’
Chloe Roberts parked her Ford Fiesta in the multi-storey before going on holiday to Iceland with her husband.
They are due to land back in the UK on Friday and live over 100 miles away from Luton Airport.
The business owner, 26, told the Sun: “I feel frustrated and upset. The worst thing is the fact we don’t know what’s going on with our car.
“We don’t know if it’s been destroyed or not. Both of us are stressing out a bit.
“We came to Iceland to have a relaxing holiday and have been up half the night panicking about the car.”
What happened last night?
Last night at around 9pm, firefighters responded to calls of a fire at one of Luton Airport’s car parks.
Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, has now given an outline of how events unfolded.
He said “Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service’s fire control received an initial 999 call at 8.47pm yesterday evening, reporting a car on fire on the third floor of the Terminal car park two behind me here at London Luton Airport.
“Our first two fire appliances arrived on scene just a shade under 10 minutes later to work alongside firefighters from Luton Airport Fire Service.
“On arrival my officers were faced with a severe and rapidly spreading fire involving a large number of vehicles that ultimately spread to multiple floors and involved a partial collapse of the car park.
“The incident was declared a major incident at 9.38pm. The car park has a capacity of just over 1,900 cars and we estimate up to 1,500 cars are in the affected car park.
“At its peak we had 15 fire appliances, over 100 firefighters and a number of specialist resources including the one you will see over my right-hand shoulder, with resources provided by neighbouring fire and rescue services.”
Ryanair flight departs London Luton
A Ryanair flight has recently departed the airport following last night's fire.
The first commercial flight to have departed is now heading to Cork.
Flight FR423 was originally expected to leave at 1pm.
How many people have been affected by the blaze?
As many as 25,000 passengers could have been affected, with at least 140 flights cancelled since the fire started.
Passengers already on board planes were forced to disembark as more than 100 firefighters, three specialist aerial appliances and 15 fire engines were called to the scene.
Late last night the top floor of the car park collapsed, wrecking hundreds of motors parked on the lower levels.
Flights resume
The first flight has departed London Luton Airport following last night's fire.
The flight was a private jet and not a commercial airline flight.
Flights estimated to resume
According to London Luton's departure board, flights were estimated to have departed.
They include a Ryanair flight to Lanzarote - Arrecife airport, which was expected to leave at 06:25.
Another 15:00 departure is a Ryanair flight to Cork.
When will flights resume?
According to London Luton Airport, flights are expected to resume shortly at 3pm.
Luton Airport says it has created a temporary drop-off area in the mid-stay car park.
Both it and the long stay car park are fully operational, the airport says.
Holidaymakers re-entering airport
According to reports, holidaymakers are now re-entering the airport as flights look set to resume at 3pm.
In a statement the airport said: “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.”
What should I do if my flight is cancelled or delayed?
Luton Airport has advised passengers to contact their airline directly regarding their flights.
The best way to check if your flights are cancelled or are affected by delays is to locate to the website of the airport you are flying out of and find your flight number.
If your flight is covered under UK law, your airline must let you choose between either getting a refund or an alternative flight, regardless of how far in advance the cancellation was made.
Similarly, under UK law, airlines may have to provide compensation if your flight arrives at its destination more than three hours late.
Holidaymakers forced to sleep on airport floors
A group Polish university students were forced to sleep on Luton Airport's floors after their flight home was cancelled in the early hours of this morning.
Nikodem Lesiak, 18, told PA they are attempting to return to Poland after visiting the UK for a holiday.
He told PA: "We are tired, and we have spent the whole night here. We need to get to Poland as fast as possible.
"When we got here, we found out Luton is burning and everything is closed."
Lastest update from Luton Airport as flights expected to resume at 3pm
Luton Airport has provided a new update regarding last night's fire.
Flights are expected to resume at 3pm, but the DART shuttle service remains out of operation.
Additional staff are on hand to answer any questions.
Expert reveals most common cause of car fires
An expert has revealed the most common cause of car fires following yesterday's shocking blaze at Luton Airport.
AA technical expert Greg Carter said the most common cause of car fires is an electrical fault with the 12-volt battery system, PA reports.
He added that diesel is "much less flammable" than petrol, and in a car it takes "intense pressure or sustained flame" to ignite diesel.
What has Luton Airport said?
In a statement following last night's fire, the airport said: "Emergency services remain on the scene following last night's fire in Terminal Car Park 2.
"Our priority remains supporting the emergency services and the safety of our passengers and staff.
"Therefore, we have now taken the decision to suspend all flights until 3pm on Wednesday."
At the time of writing, flights remain cancelled until at least 3pm.
WATCH: Shocking video shows massive blaze rip through Luton Airport car park
A shocking video showing the fire that ripped through Luton Airport yesterday from inside the affected car park has been shared.
The flames ripped through the Terminal Car Park 2 in Luton as holidaymakers looked on in horror and firefighters battled the inferno into the early hours of the morning.
What happened last night?
Last night at around 9pm, firefighters responded to calls of a fire at one of Luton Airport's car parks.
Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, has now given an outline of how events unfolded.
He said "Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service's fire control received an initial 999 call at 8.47pm yesterday evening, reporting a car on fire on the third floor of the Terminal car park two behind me here at London Luton Airport.
"Our first two fire appliances arrived on scene just a shade under 10 minutes later to work alongside firefighters from Luton Airport Fire Service.
"On arrival my officers were faced with a severe and rapidly spreading fire involving a large number of vehicles that ultimately spread to multiple floors and involved a partial collapse of the car park.
"The incident was declared a major incident at 9.38pm. The car park has a capacity of just over 1,900 cars and we estimate up to 1,500 cars are in the affected car park.
"At its peak we had 15 fire appliances, over 100 firefighters and a number of specialist resources including the one you will see over my right-hand shoulder, with resources provided by neighbouring fire and rescue services."
Car park was not equipped with sprinklers
Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, has revealed there were no sprinklers in the car park at Luton Airport.
He told reporters in Luton today: "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."
Fire took over car park at ‘incredible’ speed
Russell Taylor, 41, an account director from Kinross in Scotland, saw the flames after flying into Luton Airport from Edinburgh.
He said: “There were a couple of fire engines with a car ablaze on the upper floor of the car park at just after 9pm.
“A few minutes later most of the upper floor was alight, car alarms were going off with loud explosions from cars going up in flames.
“The speed in which the fire took hold was incredible.”
25,000 passengers affected by blaze
Around 25,000 passengers have been affected by a fire that ripped through one of Luton Airport's car parks, reports PA.
40 flights due to take off or land at Luton Airport have been cancelled since the fire started yesterday night.
On top of this, 17 arrivals were diverted to airports including Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, East Midlands, Gatwick, Liverpool John Lennon, Manchester and Stansted.
The worst affected airlines were Wizz Air and easyJet, which operate the most flights at Luton Airport, PA's data team reports.
Latest update from Luton Airport
Flights remain cancelled up until 3pm, as per Luton Airport's latest update.
'Cause' of massive Luton Airport blaze revealed
The origin of last night's massive fire at Luton Airport has been revealed
Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, explained how the fire started.
He said: "We have no intelligence at this stage to suggest that this was anything other than an accidental fire that started in one of the vehicles that had not long arrived at the airport.
"It was not an EV. This was a diesel powered vehicle."
Holidaymakers 'frustrated and upset'
Chloe Roberts parked her Ford Fiesta in the multi-storey before going on holiday to Iceland with her husband.
They are due to land back in the UK on Friday and live over 100 miles away from Luton Airport.
The business owner, 26, told the Sun: "I feel frustrated and upset. The worst thing is the fact we don't know what's going on with our car.
"We don't know if it's been destroyed or not. Both of us are stressing out a bit.
"We came to Iceland to have a relaxing holiday and have been up half the night panicking about the car."
When will flights continue?
Following the incident, all incoming flights were diverted elsewhere and flights were also cancelled as a result - however, they are expected to resume today (Wednesday, October 11, 2023).
In a statement at 3am, the airport said: "Emergency services continue to respond to a significant fire in Terminal Car Park 2, which has resulted in a partial structural collapse.
"All flights are suspended until 3pm on Wednesday. Passengers are advised not to travel to the airport at this time."
However, it is not confirmed that flights will continue as normal at 3pm.
