Perth Airport faces ‘emergency situation’ after fire
Hundreds of passengers have been forced to rush for the exits in an Australian airport evacuation, while others are stuck on the tarmac.
Hundreds of people have been forced to evacuate from Perth Airport amid fears a fire could spread throughout its terminals.
Perth Airport confirmed a “small kitchen fire” set off alarms at Terminals 3 and 4, causing the evacuation.
@perthairport evacuated. Will be a long afternoon #qantas#perthairport#needwinepic.twitter.com/CuQDZaxcgE
— Dion Warnock (@DionWTF) October 25, 2022
“As per normal safety procedures, the terminals were evacuated,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
Images shared on social media showed large crowds of people gathering outside the Qantas terminal, with many fearing hours of delays thanks to the fire.
“Will be a long afternoon … we were going to be here for HOURS,” one person said on Twitter.
One international (T3) and one domestic terminal (T4) were impacted.
Though Perth Airport says “the reoccupation of the terminals has commenced” it concedes delays for departing flights are expected.
One customer has taken to social media to express concerns over “bottlenecks” they claim could present dangers to passengers in the event of a large fire.
“@PerthAirport might want to take note, so many bottlenecks when evacuating, if there was a raging fire there’s no way of getting out quickly,” he said.
Video of passengers slowly shuffling through the terminal as sirens sound have emerged online.
One person reported her family was stuck on the tarmac due to the situation.
“ … my mum and sister are stuck on the plane and been told they can’t get off,” she shared online.
The fire has now been extinguished, Perth Airport says.