Heathrow Airport Fire: Thousands of passengers stranded

LONDON — From Las Vegas to Frankfurt to Dubai, hundreds of thousands of stranded passengers waited for news about flights to and from London’s Heathrow Airport after it was closed by a massive fire at a nearby electricity substation.

As firefighters tackled the blaze that took down Europe’s busiest transport hub, flights came to a standstill, sending a wrecking ball through the delicate logistics underpinning global tourism and business travel.

In the hotels around Heathrow, thwarted travelers reported skyrocketing prices as they scrambled for a place to spend the night. In Dubai, Sara Mehta told NBC’s international partner Sky News that customers of Heathrow-headquartered British Airways are “extremely angry and upset.”

In the Chinese city of Guangzhou, Charlotte Johnston told Sky News that she has been stuck in a layover at the airport for hours with only carry-on luggage, and that she was already out of clothes and toiletries. 

Chez Khan, a client services director from London who was left stranded in Las Vegas, said Friday that the biggest impact on him was missing his children. “That I was away from home for a week was already a challenge,” he said.

Khan, 47, said that his airline carrier, Virgin Atlantic, directed him and another group of passengers to a Holiday Inn near the airport, but when they arrived staff told them that no one had contacted them and that they had no rooms available.

“We were then sent back to the airport, and no staff were available to help,” he said, adding, “So we were literally left stranded in Vegas.”

Eventually, he found other accommodation through work, he said.

Becky Davies, 41, said she was also left stranded in “Sin City” after celebrating her 20th anniversary with her husband. She said they were supposed to fly back overnight Thursday.

“It was a special trip for us. It’s just a shame it’s all gone so wrong at the end,” said Davies, 41, adding that their four children were waiting for their return. “My youngest is only 8, so she was so excited to see us come home,” Davies said.

In Switzerland, Taylor Collier-Brown said she was stranded in Geneva with her field hockey team after a skiing trip in the French Alps.