ABC-
LONDON — London’s Luton Airport reopened Wednesday after a vehicle fire spread through a newly built parking garage, causing the partial collapse of the structure and major disruption for tens of thousands of passengers.
Dozens of flights were canceled, diverted or delayed at Luton, located about 56 kilometers (35 miles) north of central London, after the blaze erupted late Tuesday.
Four firefighters and an airport employee were treated for the effects of smoke inhalation after the fire.
Officials at the airport, which is a hub for easyJet, Ryanair and other budget airlines running flights to destinations in the United Kingdom and Europe, said flights began to arrive and take off again Wednesday afternoon.
Investigators believe the fire started with a diesel vehicle, according to Chief Fire Officer Andrew Hopkinson of the Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service. The recently opened parking garage didn’t appear to have sprinklers, he said.
“And then that fire has quickly and rapidly spread,” Hopkinson told reporters. More than 100 firefighters were deployed to tackle the blaze, he said.
Authorities said they don’t believe someone started the fire intentionally. more
Of all the vehicles out there the least likely one to start on fire is a diesel. Unless of course it was carrying a load of lithium ion batteries.
Wait till Friday.
@Joe
Yeah, diesel barely starts on fire without compression.
Lucky the place was not full of electric vehicles…
It would have been much worse, as we all know.
Crappy design if a vehicle fire can bring even a part of it down. Unless said vehicle is a tanker full of fuel, at which point WTF is it doing in a garage.