Major disruption as grass fire halts all trains to Heathrow Airport
A trackside grass fire near London Paddington has caused major disruptions to train services heading to Heathrow Airport. This incident follows a separate airfield fire at Heathrow earlier the same day, leading to significant travel delays for passengers.
Why it matters
Infrastructure failures and environmental hazards like grass fires can severely impact international travel hubs and public transportation networks.
Image source, PA Media Image caption, Departure boards appeared to have gone blank at Paddington as train services were cut into Saturday evening
Trains to and from Heathrow Airport have been halted after a trackside grass fire caused delays and cancellations.
National Rail said "major disruption" was expected until the end of Saturday following the incident which began shortly after 16:00 BST.
A statement said all lines were blocked between London Paddington station and Heathrow's terminals, as well as Reading, due to "a failure of the electricity supply caused by a fire next to the track".
It comes hours after a separate grass fire on Heathrow's airfield shut a runway earlier on Saturday.
Pictures on social media showed crowds of stranded passengers at Paddington, one of London's main rail hubs.
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