ALICANTE, Spain: A fire broke out Wednesday on the roof of the airport in Alicante, a town on the eastern Mediterranean coast that is a tourism hotspot, forcing the evacuation of the building and disrupting flights.
“There was a fire on the roof of the terminal and for a while no one was allowed in or out,” said a spokesman for Spanish airport operator Aena.
Firefighters quickly brought the blaze under control and the area was “being ventilated so the operations can resume,” he said.
Four flights due to land at Alicante were diverted to other Spanish airports while several scheduled departures were delayed while the flames were extinguished, Aena said in a tweet.
The flames were visible from inside the terminal, according to an AFP photographer at the scene.
Passengers and workers stood outside as dense smoke rose from the terminal building.
No one was injured and the authorities are still not sure what caused the fire.
The airport serves the eastern region of Valencia, which is home to several popular resorts such as Benidorm. It handled just under 14 million passengers last year, making it Spain’s fifth busiest airport. - AFP