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Heathrow airport had ‘enough power’ to stay open – UK grid boss

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By Francesca Hangeior

The head of the United Kingdom national grid has said there was “enough power” to keep Heathrow Airport running on Friday, after an electrical substation fire shuttered Europe’s busiest air hub.

The shutdown — which lasted most of the day — affected thousands of passengers around the world and raised questions about the reliability of one of the UK’s key pieces of infrastructure.

National Grid chief executive John Pettigrew told the Financial Times on Sunday that power had remained available to the airport in west London through two other substations.

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“There was no lack of capacity from the substations,” he said. “Each substation individually can provide enough power to Heathrow.”

“Losing a substation is a unique event — but there were two others available.”

Airport officials said the closure was due to the time it took to switch to the other substations and make safety checks.

“Hundreds of critical systems across the airport were required to be safely powered down and then safely and systematically rebooted,” a Heathrow Airport spokesperson said.

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“Given Heathrow’s size and operational complexity, safely restarting operations after a disruption of this magnitude was a significant challenge.”

Heathrow chief executive Thomas Woldbye had said a back-up transformer failed, meaning systems had to be closed so power supplies could be restructured from the two other substations.

The government has ordered a six-week investigation into the shutdown.

About 1,350 flights were affected by Friday’s closure, according to the Flightradar24 tracking website. Around 120 Heathrow-bound planes were in the air when the closure was announced and had to be diverted.

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Fire officials have said the blaze, which broke out on Thursday night, was “believed to be non-suspicious” and that enquiries would “focus on the electrical distribution equipment”.

Asked on Monday about the way airport bosses handled the events, transport secretary Heidi Alexander said: “I’m not going to justify decisions that Heathrow leadership did or didn’t take.

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Harmony Gardens CEO, Hon. Mosadoluwa Greets President Tinubu At 73

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Honarable (Alhaji) Saheed Audullahi Mosadoluwa, the Chief Executive of Harmony Gardens and Estate Development Limited has extended birthday greetings to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR on his 73rd birthday, wishing him good health and long life in order for the country to benefit from his “excellent leadership.”

In a message to mark the 73rd birthday of the President, the businessman commended Asiwaju Tinubu for making “sustained efforts to overcome the many problems of the country,” while wishing him many happy returns of the day and thanking him for creating an enabling environment for Nigerian entrepreneurs to succeed in their pursuits.”

Hon. Mosadoluwa who is also the founder of Royal Crystal Airways, New Horizon Aviation Agency, Ibile Auctioneer & Recovery and Ibile Food Security Farm City Limited in a statement issued on Saturday, was quoted as saying, “President Tinubu is a goal getter with keen interest of assembling technocrats in his team, courageous, audacious, passionate, patriotic nationalist and committed to the progress, growth, and development of Nigeria without looking back.”

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The Oyo town-born businessman added, “President Tinubu’s financial wizardry and economic intellect is unparalleled and he is no doubt a grandmaster of progressive politics in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“When he came into power in 2023 his administration met Nigeria’s economic turmoil, widespread poverty, and rising unemployment, however President Tinubu impressively turned the tide by implementing bold reforms to stabilise the economy.

“The withdrawal of the unsustainable fuel subsidy and the unification of the FOREX market were pivotal steps, redirecting funds to critical sectors like healthcare, education, and infrastructure. These measures have reduced petrol importation to a considerable percentage and boosted investor confidence, making the Nigerian Stock Exchange the top-performing bourse globally.

“On this auspicious day Mr. President, all of us at Harmony Gardens and Estate Development Limited we say happy glorious birthday to you sir. May you celebrate more, in overflowing happiness and good health. Your Excellency, congratulations sir.”

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Just in: 2025 Ramadan Fasting Ends As Sultan Of Sokoto Confirms Sighting Of Moon For Eid-el-Fitr

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

The Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Abubakar Sa’ad, has announced that the crescent moon marking the end of Ramadan fasting has been sighted.

The Genius Media Nigeria reports that the Sultan made this known in a broadcast on Saturday.

The Sultan said they received reports of sighting from Borno, Zazzau, Dutse, Maru, among other places within the country.

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The Sultan, who is president of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSIA), said, “Today marks the end of the Ramadan fasting and Sunday, March 30, is the Eid-el-Fitri celebration”.

Details shortly….

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ARH Chairperson, Kemi Ayelabola Hails President Tinubu’s Virtues At 73*

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

The Chairperson and Conve­ner of Asiwaju Renewed Hope (ARH’23), Kemi Olokode-Ayelab­ola has paid glowing tributes to the President of Nigeria, National Leader of All Progressives Congress APC and former Governor of Lagos State, Senator (Asiwaju) Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR as he celebrate his 73rd birthday.

Olokode-Ayelabola, a resident of the Republic of Ireland who mobilised and campaigned for President Bola Tinubu during the February 2023 presidential poll is a behavioral, developmental and child/young persons care professional, in a congratulatory massage to the septuagenarian described him as a visionary and transformative president.

She said the Nigerian leader who is also the Jagaban of Borgu Kingdom, has remained a Colossus and a phenomenon in the annals of the ruling party and the nation’s political history.

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Kemi also noted that the exceptional political career and service of Tinubu, has inspired so many people and has produced many successful leaders in the country.

She continued to disclose further that the APC National Leader is an icon, bridge builder and a patriotic elder statesman who believes in the development, unity and corporate existence of Nigeria.

“Your Excellency, I feel so elated and fulfilled to join other well meaning Nigerians across the globe to felicitate with you on your 73rd birthday. You are indeed an incredible leader with a large heart who has continued to be a major player in the Nigerian politics through your broad-minded and examplary leadership style.

“So many people owe their successes to your magnanimity and accommodating nature. You are truly a legend, an astute politician with uncommon intellect. It is my prayer that your tireless commitment to addressing governance challenges, fortifying national security, and mitigating economic hardships continue to inspire vista of hope and resilience among Nigerians”, she said.

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Kemi prayed for more years in good health and wisdom for the president, to continue to serve Nigeria and humanity by extention.

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