Why Heathrow boss went to BED & let his deputy close airport while inferno raged leaving 300,000 passengers in limbo
THE Heathrow boss went to bed instead of working through the night as the fire ripped through the airport’s main substation, it emerged last night.
Thomas Woldbye went to sleep and left the decision to close Europe‘s busiest airport to his deputy, Javier Echave, in the early hours of Friday morning.
The 60-year-old had reportedly been at an event in central London when the power first went out after 11pm on Thursday before going back to the scene, according to the Sunday Times.
As the extent of the inferno became clear, senior bosses were split into two “gold commands”.
At around 12.30am it was decided Woldbye’s command would go to bed leaving his deputy in charge until around 7.30am.
Insiders said the decision was taken for safety reasons so Woldbye was well-rested to make clear decisions on when the airport should reopen.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has ordered the National Energy System Operator to “urgently investigate” the power outage.
He is working with Ofgem and using powers under the Energy Act to formally launch the grid operator’s investigation.
Meanwhile, an internal review of the airport’s crisis management plans and its response to the power outage will be undertaken by former transport secretary Ruth Kelly.
“We are determined to properly understand what happened and what lessons need to be learned,” Mr Miliband said.
“That is why, working with Ofgem, I have today commissioned the National Energy System Operator to carry out an investigation into this specific incident and to understand any wider lessons to be learned on energy resilience for critical national infrastructure, both now and in the future.
“The Government is determined to do everything it can to prevent a repeat of what happened at Heathrow.”
The National Energy System Operator (Neso) is expected to report to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and Ofgem with initial findings within six weeks.
Flights resumed at the west London airport on Friday evening and restrictions on overnight flights were temporarily lifted after hours of closure.
A blaze knocked out an electricity substation in Hayes the previous evening.
Counter-terrorism officers from the Metropolitan Police initially led the investigation.
But the force has confirmed the fire is believed to be non-suspicious so London Fire Brigade is now leading the probe which will focus on the electrical distribution equipment.
Woldbye welcomed the investigation adding: “We will support every effort to understand the causes and impacts of yesterday’s off-airport incident and we are committed to working closely with all stakeholders to ensure a thorough investigation to help strengthen the airport’s future resilience.”
He apologised to stranded passengers and defended the airport’s response to the situation.
He said the incident is as “as big as it gets for our airport” and that “we cannot guard ourselves 100 per cent”.