Massive fire shuts down Nairobi airport; whole terminal in flames

[Tx4obama]

Source: CNN

(CNN) -- A massive fire shut down Nairobi's Kenyatta International Airport on Tuesday, Kenyan government and airport officials said.

The blaze has engulfed the entire international terminal, Ken Mijungu of CNN affiliate NTV reported.

No casualties were reported from the fire, which sent a huge plume of thick black smoke into the sky.

The airport is closed indefinitely, the Kenyan Interior Ministry tweeted. The ministry also said fire engines are running dangerously low on water.

Read more: http://edition.cnn.com/2013/08/07/world/africa/kenya-airport-fire/index.html

---

The AP article below has a PHOTO

Big fire closes Nairobi airport; flights rerouted

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — A massive fire engulfed the arrivals hall at Kenya's main international airport early Wednesday, forcing East Africa's largest airport to close and the rerouting of all inbound flights.

Dark black smoke that shot skyward was visible across much of Nairobi as emergency teams battled the blaze. Stranded passengers stood on sidewalks outside the airport with their luggage in hand.

"It was huge, the smoke billowing, and it didn't seem to be stopping," said Barry Fisher, who had hoped to fly to Ethiopia on Wednesday morning.

Associated Press reporters at the scene said the fire had gutted the international arrivals hall, where passengers pass through immigration and retrieve their luggage. The Kenya Airports Authority said the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport has been closed until further notice so that emergency teams could battle the fire.

-snip-

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/big-fire-closes-nairobi-airport-flights-rerouted

[Bosonic]

1. Nairobi airport closes as fire crews tackle blaze

A huge fire has broken out at the main international airport in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.

The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) said Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) had been closed and passengers evacuated.

Cabinet secretary for transport Michael Kamau said the fire was "very severe" and urged people to stay away from the airport.

Images showed flames raging from one of the main buildings.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-23598012

[Tx4obama]

2. Thanks for posting a photo :) -- CNN has added a VIDEO

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/08/07/world/africa/kenya-airport-fire/index.html

[cosmicone]

3. It was a shitty airport anyway and needed a revision

Thank heavens no one was hurt.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

4. Must be made of wood.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

5. Local reporting (in English)

[Tx4obama]

6. Additional article INFO and photo slideshow on link below

-snip-

The fire broke out on the 15th anniversary of the U.S. Embassy bombings in Nairobi and neighboring Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, but there were no immediate signs of terrorism. Kenya's anti-terror police boss, Boniface Mwaniki, told The Associated Press that he was waiting for the fire to be put out so that he could inspect the scene before making a judgment.

-snip-

Full article and FOUR photos in slideshow here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/07/nairobi-airport-fire_n_3717101.html

[Rhiannon12866]

7. Yikes! Another pic from the NYT:

Huge Fire Shuts Down Nairobi’s International Airport

NAIROBI, Kenya — The Kenyan authorities ordered the closure on Wednesday of Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, the busiest in the country, after a huge fire broke out and spread to the international arrivals area, officials said.

The blaze shut down one of East Africa’s most important transportation hubs, with only emergency landings permitted. The fire broke out around 5 a.m., when many flights to and from Europe and elsewhere are scheduled. It was contained after several hours, Kenyan officials said, but there was no indication of when the airport would reopen.

<snip>

The fire broke out less than two days after problems with a fuel jet pump forced the diversion of flights to other regional airports including those of Mombasa, Entebbe International Airport in Uganda and Kigali International Airport in Rwanda, Reuters reported.

The blaze sent a plume of black smoke that was visible from the Kenyan capital a few miles away, witnesses said. Reporters from The Associated Press at the scene said stranded passengers stood on sidewalks outside the airport with their luggage in hand, and that the international arrivals hall had been gutted.


http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/08/world/africa/huge-fire-shuts-down-nairobis-international-airport.html

[dipsydoodle]

8. I'd seen that picture elsewhere too.

Fire looks a bit on the large size.

[Rhiannon12866]

9. It looks and sounds absolutely horrific.

I've never been there, but my grandmother has. This country really doesn't need this.

[dipsydoodle]

10. More here

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/07/kenya-airport-fire-forces-closure includes video too.

No they don't really need it.

[Rhiannon12866]

11. Thanks! That looks even worse!

I think that we ought to be helping with this...

[BumRushDaShow]

12. Hope this was an accident vs being related to the 15th anniversary

of the Kenyan & Tanzanian U.S. Embassy bombings, which was August 7, 1998.

[AverageJoe90]

14. I hope so, too. n/t

[bluedigger]

13. I have a friend scheduled to fly out of there on Saturday.

She is optimistic that she will be on schedule...

[Posteritatis]

15. Under control in four hours and not a single injury. The first responders did fantastically. (nt)

[marions ghost]

16. My sister was in a plane from Europe flying to Nairobi today

Only just now heard from her via email. Got detoured to Tanzania but she is OK. Her first trip to Africa ever. Was a little tense in our family today. The worst part was that she had no access to any form of communication for quite awhile.

Thankful nobody was injured in that mess.

[jasond54231]

17. The pictures in that article are very frightening

It's a relief that no one was injured in that great inferno.

[Bosonic]

18. APNewsBreak: Banks looted in Kenya airport fire

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Officials in Kenya tell The Associated Press that first responders to the massive Nairobi airport fire looted electronics and banks during and after the blaze.

The officials said first responders stole electronics and money from an ATM. Another official said that police guarding the site overnight attempted to a take safe from a bank in the burned-out arrivals hall, which also houses several foreign currency exchange shops.

All four officials who described the alleged looting are close to the investigation. They insisted on anonymity because they weren't authorized to share the information before the investigation is complete.

The criminal investigations policeman for the airport, Joseph Ngisa, said he hasn't received formal complaints of theft and that police are waiting for affected institutions to report what they lost in the fire.

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/kenya-airport-fire-slow-return-intl-flights

[Blue_Tires]

19. I didn’t set fire to the airport, declares Pattni

Goldenberg architect Kamlesh Pattni has distanced himself from the Wednesday airport fire which destroyed property worth millions of shillings and left thousands of travellers stranded.

Mr Pattni, who lays claim to duty free shops which were demolished at the airport only a week before the dawn blaze, has become a focus of investigations into the fire which forced the closure of the region’s travel hub for hours.

But speaking to the Sunday Nation on Saturday, the controversial businessman insisted he was innocent.

“I have nothing to do with the evil act. I was absolutely not involved in destruction of the property,” he said.

In his first interview since the incident, Mr Pattni described reports linking him to the fire as “malicious and unfortunate”.

“The government has said that it is investigating the matter. I don’t want to be dragged into any speculation. Let us all be patient and wait for the truth. The truth shall be known,” he said.

The man behind the biggest con in the nation’s history—the Goldenberg scandal—spoke as it emerged that a team of elite detectives picked to investigate the cause of the fire were looking into smuggling cartels that operate within two VIP lounges belonging to Mr Pattni.
http://www.nation.co.ke/News/I-didnt-set-fire-to-the-airport-declares-Pattni/-/1056/1943742/-/yupf4fz/-/index.html


I don't know how reputable this paper is, but essentially there was a longtime smuggling operation run out of the airport (with the full cooperation of airport managers) and they are postulating that as authorities were closing in, someone lit a fire to burn paperwork, goods or other evidence...