Power cut hits London’s Gatwick airport
March 10th, 2012 - 10:16 pm ICT by IANSLondon, March 10 (IANS) A power cut Saturday caused chaos in the baggage handling system at the Gatwick airport in London, and forced many fights to leave without passengers’ bags.
Extra staff had to be called in to move passengers’ luggage manually, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Though no flights were cancelled, some were delayed while many had to take off without all of their passengers’ bags.
An airport spokesman said a fault in an electricity substation around 3.30 a.m. caused a series of power failures.
Though power was restored, eight baggage belts were left at a standstill till 10.30 a.m.
The airport advised passengers to contact their airline about their belongings once they had reached their destinations.
Passengers at the airport reported chaotic scenes as bags coming off flights were piled up in the middle of the floor of the baggage reclaim areas.
Gatwick, located 45 km south of London, is Britain’s second-largest airport and the busiest single-runway airport in the world. It serves more than 200 destinations in 90 countries for around 33 million passengers a year.
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