Cape Town Airport fire: International departures resume as electricity restored

The Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) has announced that electricity has been restored fully to the Cape Town International Airport after a fire earlier on Tuesday disrupted services and flights.

ACSA said in a statement that the fire in the Northern Service Yard (International inner lane, landside was reported at approximately 11h15 and was extinguished shortly thereafter.

It said as a precaution, sections of the International Terminal affected by smoke were evacuated. “We can confirm that all passengers and staff were evacuated safely and calmly.”

It said technical teams are currently stabilising network and IT systems and services are progressively returning to normal.

Regarding international and domestic flights, ACSA provided the following status update:

• International Departures: Operations have resumed. However, due to the earlier suspension, passengers should expect delays and schedule adjustments.
• International Arrivals: Some flights were diverted during the incident. Passengers are urged to confirm arrival statuses directly with their airlines.
• Domestic Flights: Both arrivals and departures experienced minor disruptions due to system outages. Delays may persist as operations stabilise.

To avoid congestion in the terminal, it urged passengers to:

• Check the ACSA App for real-time updates.
• Contact your airline directly to confirm flight status before travelling to the airport.

ACSA said further updates will be issued as the airport returns to a full operational schedule.

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