Big Heathrow warehouse fire
10.07.10
About 100 firefighters were needed yesterday to tackle a fire at a cargo area at Heathrow. It is thought a forklift truck caught fire at the Servisair Warehouse and the fire spread to a building at the west airport after several gas canisters exploded. No-one was hurt and flights were not affected, despite the close proximity of the fire to the airport.
Despite the size of the blaze and the amount of smoke, which could be seen from more than six miles away, a spokesperson for Heathrow Airport confirmed ‘operations were unaffected’ by the fire. The London Fire Brigade (LFB) was called at 13:15 yesterday and more than 200 people were evacuated from the area. The cargo area was cordoned off but the airfield remained open. Roads in the area were closed, causing traffic problems and meaning passengers heading for Terminal Four had to take a different route.
An LFB spokesman said it was a ‘sizeable’ fire in a warehouse within the airport perimeter and that 20 appliances and more than 100 firefighters were in attendance. It was brought under control by early evening. The airport used its Twitter feed to keep passengers updated about the situation.
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