London’s Luton Airport closed as fire rips through car park

All flights have been suspended in London’s Luton Airport following the breakout of a “significant” fire in the airport’s Terminal 2 parking lot, the airport said in a statement on Wednesday.

The airport said it would be closed until at least 3 p.m. local time, with passengers advised not to travel to the airport.

“Emergency services remain on the scene following last night’s fire in Terminal Car Park 2,” the airport said on X/Twitter on Wednesday.

Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service has since confirmed that the fire “is no longer a major incident” and it has scaled back its response.

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“Crews have controlled and extinguished the fire at Luton Airport,” it said in a statement posted on X/Twitter. “Four crews and an aerial appliance remain at the scene.”

Chief Fire Officer Andy Hopkinson told reporters that he estimated that around 1,500 vehicles were in the car park when the fire broke out on Tuesday evening.

Hopkinson went on to stress that there was no evidence to suggest that the fire was anything but accidental, before adding that he believed the fire had started in one vehicle and then spread throughout the car park.

According to Hopkinson, four firefighters and a member of the airport staff team were treated for “mild smoke inhalation” as a result of the fire and have since been discharged from hospital.

He went on to confirm that no members of the public were harmed.

Luton Airport said earlier the fire had resulted in “partial structural collapse.”

It stressed that its “priority remains supporting the emergency services and the safety of our passengers and staff,” CNN reports.

The airport advised passengers to contact their airlines for more information about the status of their flights. It said that airport “access remains strictly limited.”

Luton Airport is located in Bedfordshire, about 55 kilometres (34 miles) northwest of London. It is a hub for several low-cost airlines, including easyJet, Wizz Air and Ryanair.