Thousands of passengers were stranded after a huge fire erupted at the London Luton Airport in the U.K., according to reports.
Fire chiefs said that the airport’s multi-story car park erupted in flames around Tuesday evening, suspending all outbound flights until 3 p.m. the next day. Fifteen fire trucks and more than 100 firefighters were deployed.
Hundreds of vehicles parked inside were also damaged, despite having the fire put out. The airport’s Terminal Car Park 2 has reportedly partially collapsed.
The fire was suspected to have started with a diesel vehicle, and there are no signs that it was intentional.
“We don’t believe it was an electric vehicle,” said Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service. “It’s believed to be diesel-powered, at this stage all subject to verification. And then that fire has quickly and rapidly spread.”
“I am immensely proud of my team here and this was by no means just a fire service effort but we are proud of all of the blue light services who have come together to tackle this situation,” Hopkinson continued.
AA technical expert Greg Carter said that electrical problems with the 12-volt battery system are the most frequent cause of car fires. He added that diesel requires “intense pressure or sustained flame” in a vehicle to ignite, making it “much less flammable” than gasoline.
The fire service said that a temporary ramp was built at the parking lot’s entrance to allow cars to enter and exit the lot securely. Hopkinson said that there were “just shy of 1,500” vehicles in the affected car park.
“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?” the fire officer said.
According to flight data websites, at least 140 aircraft scheduled to take off or land at the airport have been canceled since the fire began, affecting almost 25,000 airline customers.
The airport announced it would reopen in the afternoon, but passengers scheduled on planes leaving before 3 p.m. were warned not to go there.
