Fire erupts at Melbourne Airport terminal 1, causing evacuations and major flight delays
Melbourne Airport was thrown into chaos on Friday night after a fire at Terminal 1 forced the evacuation of more than 1,500 passengers and left planes stranded on the tarmac.
The fire was reported just after 7pm and Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) and the airport’s Aviation Fire and Rescue Services responded immediately.
The fire was brought under control in approximately 25 minutes.
A spokesperson for FRV confirmed that the small fire was located and quickly brought under control.
A Melbourne Airport spokesman said the fire had not spread to other terminals.
“Emergency services have completed a full assessment of the terminal and we have worked to support passengers to return to the terminal and restart operations once it is deemed safe to do so,” the spokesman said.
“The safety of passengers and staff was our top priority throughout this incident and we appreciate the patience and cooperation shown by passengers.
“Passengers traveling on Qantas domestic services are advised to check directly with the airline for the latest updates on their flight.”
Passengers encountered significant disruptions; some waited up to five hours for a new flight or accommodation.
One man told the ABC it was the culmination of a day of travel chaos.
“I had a flight booked with Virgin and they cancelled, so they very kindly rebooked me with Qantas for tonight and now it’s cancelled,” he said.
“Looks like I finally have a Jetstar flight back to Launceston tomorrow morning at 7.20am.”
Another passenger said that he was stuck on the asphalt of the plane for 2.5 hours due to the fire.
“It’s very frustrating when no one knows what it is, and of course it’s very difficult for a baby,” she said.
“We actually had a flight to catch and we missed it because of the incident.”
By 9pm, 11 planes were lined up on the tarmac, leaving Qantas passengers who had recently landed in Melbourne stranded while the scene was secured.
Officials said no one was injured and the cause of the fire was being investigated.
Meanwhile, Australian airports face further chaos after Airbus issued a global alert affecting nearly 6000 A320 aircraft.
Jetstar confirmed that some flights from Sydney and Melbourne were canceled on Saturday morning due to preventative software updates on the aircraft.
“Jetstar is affected by an Airbus fleet software issue affecting all A320 family operators globally,” a Jetstar spokesperson said, adding that the airline was working to get affected passengers back on the road as soon as possible.
