Man arrested after Luton Airport car park fire | UK News

A man has been arrested after a fire tore through a multi-storey car park at Luton Airport which ignited a wave of delays and cancellations.

The overnight blaze led to a ‘partial structural collapse’ at the newly built Car Park 2 at Luton, the fourth-largest airport serving London, on October 10.

Some 100 firefighters battled the blaze for 12 hours, with fire officials suspecting the cause was a diesel car that suffered an electrical fault or leaky fuel line.

Bedfordshire Police said that a man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage last week. 

He has been released on bail while enquiries continue.

The force said: ‘Police last week arrested a man in his 30s on suspicion of criminal damage in connection to their investigation into a significant fire in a car park at London Luton Airport on Tuesday (10 October).

‘We are carrying out a thorough and diligent investigation into all potential lines of enquiry, as should be expected after such a major event.

‘The man has been released on bail while our enquiries continue.’

Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service declared a major incident at 9.38pm in an inferno which drew 15 fire engines and three specialist aerial appliances from neighbouring forces.

As the fire grew in intensity, up to 1,200 of the 1,500 parked in the garage were charred and gutted.

Luton Airport is a key hub for budget airlines like easyJet with Ryanair, with airport bosses suspending flights for several hours in response.

The airport set up a temporary drop-off area and provided buses for passengers while the air-rail shuttle was taken out of service.

Holidaymakers who left their cars at the airport have described facing uncertainty about whether they’ll get back their motors.

Luton Airport previously said in a statement that engineers have been working to remove vehicles from the top desk ‘for the purposes of stabilising the structure’.

‘Once removed, these cars will be stored in a safe compound,’ it added.

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