The ‘catastrophic failure’ behind Heathrow’s power outage

0:02Hi, I'm Charlie Duffield and welcome back to The Standard Podcast.

0:30wouldn't be seen as appropriate.

0:36But first, a fire and power outage that shut Heathrow Airport back in March, causing travel chaos for more than 270 ,000 passengers, was due to a catastrophic failure of equipment at a substation close by which supplies electricity to the airport. That's according to a new report published today by the National Energy System Operator. The fire was sparked by the failure of a high-voltage electrical insulator known as bushing, which was most likely caused by moisture entering the equipment. The report found that two opportunities were missed to take action that could have prevented the failure, including in 2018.

1:22Now, the regulator Ofgem is planning to launch a further investigation into the missed opportunities by the National Grid to maintain the substation properly, and could take enforcement action. A Heathrow spokesperson said, A combination of outdated regulation, inadequate safety mechanisms, and National Grid's failure to maintain its infrastructure led to this catastrophic power outage. The National Grid said in a statement that events of this nature are rare and that it has taken further action since the fire, supports the recommendations in the report and is committed to working with the National Energy System Operator to implement them.

2:05The Standards Business Editor, Jonathan Prynne, joins me now. Jonathan, what has this report revealed about the fire which took place in March? Yeah, so this is the full report from an organisation called the National Energy System Operator, which has done a very forensic and detailed investigation to the causes of this place, which I'm sure you don't need reminding, created havoc at Heathrow. Total shutdown at the airport, it really did cause havoc with a critical piece of Britain's infrastructure. And what this investigation has found is that probably was caused by high levels of moisture entering really critical components, electrical components within the substation, and that these eventually caused short circuits that ignited the fire and put the substation out of use.

2:59Now, that in itself is interesting, and actually sort of allays fears that maybe it was caused by sabotage, or the Russians or whatever. However, what is alarming is that National Grid, whose substation it is, were aware of this moisture in the system as long ago as 2018 and failed to address the problem. That's the thing that is causing most concern. The report also found that the grid was not aware, and this is really quite extraordinary, how important this substation, the North Hyde substation in Hayes, was to Heathrow. and were not aware of just how catastrophic losing the substation would be to Britain's busiest airport.

3:45And that does seem astonishing. Heathrow has blamed National Grid's failure to maintain its infrastructure. What does this say about our energy systems in the UK? National Grid are saying today that they've changed their processes and their systems and the system is very resilient. and you know all that is true to quite a large degree however there are fears and this report has increased those fears that there may be other substations that also serve vital bits of infrastructure or factories or whatever out there that are in a similarly poor state and could go off at any any moment's notice now there have been quite a few substation fires in britain recently This was the one that caused the most damage and got the most attention because of Heathrow going down.

4:38But I think there is genuine concern that there has been a lack of real diligent investment in some of these crucial bits of infrastructure. They're not very exciting things, they're electrical substations, but they're absolutely vital. And I think it will raise a lot of very, very important and difficult questions for National Grid. And what has the government said? Ed Miliband put out a statement saying he's very concerned about the findings, very concerned about particularly the findings about the lack of maintenance and that this event could have been prevented very easily. Perhaps more significantly as well, Ofgem, the industry regulator, has said they're considering some form of enforcement action against the National Grid following their own kind of follow-up investigation.

5:24So National Grid is certainly not off the hook. And Heathrow are reportedly even considering legal action. Obviously, the shutdown costs them a lot of money. Tens of millions of pounds probably damaged its reputation. So hopefully this will now trigger a real sort of audit of all these crucial bits of electrical energy infrastructure. And we can stop it happening again. Let's go to a break. Coming up in part two, how to dress to impress at the oldest tennis tournament in the world. We'll see you back here in just a moment.

6:10Welcome back. Now if you're lucky enough to have scored tickets to this year's Wimbledon tennis tournament, you'll want to make sure you look the part, as there's a strict code of conduct to rival Royal Ascot. There are a few things more quintessentially British than Wimbledon, but what does the etiquette entail? I spoke to freelance journalist Edwina Langley about what to eat, drink and wear when you head to SW19. Edwina, is there a dress code for Wimbledon? And if so, what should you wear or not wear? There isn't a dress code unless you happen to have a very special invite to the Royal Box. And if that's the case, it's a suit and jacket and tie.

6:51The rule that they have is no hat. And I presume that's so people behind you get to have a clear view. Otherwise, I would just dress really smartly. I would wear, for women, maybe dresses, trouser suits, a matching set, that sort of thing. And for the chaps, chinos, linen suits, sort of smart shirts, co-wards. Just something that really honours the occasion, really. Absolute no-nos, I would say. Sloganed anything. Ripped jeans, blip-flops. something you might wear to the beach. Who might people look to for style inspiration for the tennis tournament? Well, I would say probably the main person is the patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, which is, of course, the Princess of Wales.

7:29She very much sets the tone. Historically, she's worn dresses. Last year, she wore Sophia, a lovely purple dress. She's worn self-portrait. She's worn Roxanda. So you can't really go wrong with imitating her style. Ditto Zendaya, she was there last year when Ralph Lauren, a hugely popular outfit. So yes, those two women, I would say, are definitely people to look to. This year, I'd say also Cate Blanchett. She wore a great trouser suit yesterday in the sweltering weather, which was hugely impressive. And Rochelle Hume wore this lovely white tailored trouser suit, which I thought was gorgeous. David Beckham is a regular at Wimbledon.

8:03And I think if you're looking for a male style guru to follow, I would say him. I think he was wearing his own collection in tandem with Boss. It's Beckham by Boss. Eddie Redman was there as well. He wore a kind of cream suit with a khaki tie. He always looks quite smart. And I actually also liked Amari Douglas wore a yellow co-ord, which looked fab. And any recommended brands? I would say me and Em have some great tailoring at the moment. Whistles I'd go to for florals if you fancied a sort of summery dress or a top and trousers suit. They're really good for that. Self-portrait are great midi dresses and they look really smart.

8:37There's a really great one at the moment with a belt, which I really liked. And also if you're looking for High Street, perhaps Zara as well. They've also got some great belted dresses. For men, I think surplus have got a really nice linen blazer and trouser set out at the moment. And you can't really go wrong with moss bros if you're looking for a suit, if you do have that Royal Box invitation. Ralph Lauren also is an affiliated brand with Wimbledon, so you can look to them as well. Those would be my sort of main clothing brands. I think also sunglasses, which are a must really, especially in this very hot weather.

9:07Chloe have got some lovely oversized ones this season and Numu have got some good aviators as well. So I'd probably go to them for those much needed eye protectors. What about dressing for the unpredictable British summer? If it's going to be a really hot day, lightweight fabrics. So linens, cottons, sort of breathable materials are probably what to go for. You can also wear hats. Panama hats are very popular to obviously keep the sun out of your eyes, but not too big. Again, if you're in the royal box, no hats at all. Cate Blanchett was actually a genius yesterday because she bought with her a portable fan.

9:36And I thought, great, wear what you want. Have a little portable fan, stay cool, you know. You can also obviously cool down with drinks and ice and things. So, you know, wear what you want to wear and then try and see if you can work around the weather. In terms of rain, again, I'd say wear what you want and then have a really stylish trench coat or just something that you can throw on top if it rains and then take off when the sun shines brightly again. When it comes to etiquette, how should attendees behave? I think it's very easy when you're not at Wimbledon to think, well, you just sit there.

10:04But I think you're surrounded by this wonderful atmosphere and you're rooting for your player. and it's so tempting just to give a quick, go Emma, you know, obviously that is not really what the occasion calls for. By all means, cheer as loud as you like at the end of a point, but try and resist the urge to sort of throw in your good luck ahead of a point being played. I think the dreaded phones really, isn't it? Put them on silent. And thank goodness, selfie sticks are prohibited at Wimbledon, which is a huge relief. There are various rules about when you can and can't leave your seat. I think it's after the third game in a set.

10:32So just be mindful of the fact that if you try to stand up midpoint or something, you're probably going to get hushed down. So just try and make sure that you're considerate of other people behind you, even if you are desperate for the loo or the drink or something. Use one's common sense. Can you bring food into the tournament? Yes, you are able to bring in your own picnic. Everyone loves the strawberry at Wimbledon. So I would say that would be quite a good idea. You can take a little cool box and maybe pack some sort of easy to eat food, sandwiches, things that aren't going to splurge out and go all over your lovely outfit.

11:02So I'd say anything with tomato sauce might want to be avoided at this time. But, you know, sort of picnic-y things I would take. In the actual stadiums themselves, they don't allow glass. You can bring your own alcohol, but I think you're limited to, I think it's one bottle of wine, one bottle of champagne, a couple of cans of beer, and I don't think you're allowed to take spirits with you. You're probably allowed to take pins as well, I imagine. So, yes, you can pack your own picnic, but I think just be aware of the fact that you're probably going to be eating with your hands. You may not have a napkin to hand if you need it, so just be aware of ruining your outfit.

11:31Nothing too oily. And finally, do you have any other advice? to really enjoy the day and just and it's just to be mindful of one's mobile phone I think it's so tempting in this day and age to capture yourself there capture the moment for social media so that you can show you were there and that's all wonderful you know to share her with family and friends and things but I think sometimes one spends so long focusing on the best shot the big best close-up that actually you forget that this is a historic event at which you are at watching incredible incredible sportsmen and women play a beautiful game and I think if you can just try and just be there in the moment, watching with your phone away.

12:08You can tell everyone about it later and just really enjoy it because that's really what it's all about.

12:16And that's The Standard. For all the latest news, head to standard.co.uk. If you'd like to get in touch, please do drop us a line at podcasts at standard.co.uk. We'll be back here tomorrow at 4pm. We'll see you then. Thank you.