Heathrow tells passengers ‘do not drive’ to the airport as flooding hits access to terminals

Thousands of people could face disruption at Heathrow on Saturday after the airport has warned passengers not to drive there as flooding hits access to terminals. 

Flyers have been told to travel via train, as roads around Terminals 2 and 3 have been closed, and allow extra time for their journeys. 

The airport has ‘strongly advised’ passengers to arrive on Heathrow Express, Elizabeth line and Piccadilly line services instead. 

Passengers have also been told not to park at Terminals 2 and 3. Instead they have been advised to park at Terminals 4 or 5 before transferring. 

In a statement, Heathrow said: ‘Flooding in the central terminal area has resulted in on-going road closures restricting access to Terminals 2 and 3.

‘Passengers travelling to or from either of these terminals today must not travel by road.’

‘Any passengers that must travel by car must use Park and Ride, head to Terminals 4 or 5 and take free rail services from there, or change at local rail stations. Please allow extra time for your journeys.’ 

The airport added: ‘Our teams are working to resolve the situation as quickly as possible, we apologise for any disruption caused.’ 

Thousands of people could be affected by the road closures as they jet off on holiday this weekend (File image)

The cause of the flood is not yet known, however the airport is investigating the incident and assessing the damage. 

It comes after a grass fire forced one of Heathrow’s runways to close earlier this month. 

Runway 27L was closed for around an hour on August 6 while the airport’s fire service battled the blaze.

Witnesses said crew from four fire engines ‘quickly brought the blaze under control’.

The closure happened at peak time for the airport, which normally has two operational runways. 

The reduced capacity meant takeoffs and landings were delayed, with several arriving flights diverted to other English airports.

In May, a burst water main caused flooding at Terminals 2 and 3, suspending all trains to and from the airport. 

Heathrow was left cut off from all rail connections after a burst water main caused signalling problems on May 30. 

The Heathrow Express and Elizabeth line saw no service for much of the morning while the Piccadilly line was cut off from the airport for planned engineering works. 

National Rail apologised for the ‘major disruption’ after it said a burst water main near the airport caused a ‘fault with the signalling system’. 

The airport reported its busiest day of the year last month as 267,000 passengers travelled via Heathrow on July 19, with 7.85million people travelling through the hub across the entire month. 

The Daily Mail has approached the airport for comment. 

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