Dublin Airport was hit by a power outage on Sunday morning, causing traffic chaos at the airport and delays at check-in and at US pre-clearance in Terminal 2 for a period of time.
The power failure knocked out backup generators that are designed to ensure the airport can operate in the event of more general loss of power in the area around the airport.
Airport operator DAA said it was still looking into the cause of the fault but said the loss of power was likely to lead to the delay of some flights. Among the areas affected, according to passengers, was the dedicated US pre-clearance facility in Terminal 2, which appeared to be closed until around 11am on Sunday.
Earlier, ESB confirmed it was dealing with a power outage after a “significant fault” in north county Dublin, affecting some 34,000 customers.
“This included sections of Dublin Airport which briefly lost power earlier this morning but supply has since been fully restored at the site,” a spokesman for ESB Networks said. “ESB Networks crews mobilised immediately following reports of the fault and are currently investigating the cause while also carrying out the necessary repair works.”
Aer Lingus told customers it plans to run a full schedule but said it would offer any customers who miss their flights the option to rebook to an alternative date within the next seven days.
In a statement, a spokesperson for DAA said the issue has now been resolved after the outage led to a loss of power in “parts of Terminal 2″. It said the nature of the outage “caused an issue with the airport’s backup generators, which resulted in some delays for passengers checking-in”.
Videos have emerged of passengers queuing outside Terminal 2 awaiting instruction from DAA during the early morning outage.
Sources told The Irish Times that passengers were allowed into the terminal after power was restored at around 10am. However, there was widespread confusion among passengers amid lengthy queues for check-in and baggage drop with what sources described as a lack of co-ordination by DAA staff.
“The main check-in queues are chaos and it’s just insanity,” a source said. “Aer Lingus staff have been helpful but DAA staff were clueless.”
In a text sent to customers on Sunday morning, Aer Lingus told passengers it was doing its best to minimise disruption. “We currently plan to operate our full flight schedule. However, we are offering all those travelling who miss their flight the option to re-book to an alternative date within the next seven days, subject to availability,” the airline said.
Passengers said security in Terminal 2 seemed to be coping well in the aftermath of the power failure with passengers getting through that area in around 16 minutes.
In an earlier social media post, the DAA said: “A power outage in north County Dublin is impacting on operations in Terminal 2 at Dublin Airport this morning. Passengers should continue to travel to the airport as normal this morning, but some delays are likely.”
Mid-morning, however, the departures hall in Terminal 2 and its check in desks were packed with passengers who had been provided with little information.
Intending passenger Stephanie Ryan, from Charleston, South Carolina, had been waiting in queues for more than an hour since arriving at the airport.
At one point, she said, “there was no official end to the line”.
“Our taxi driver who brought us told us that the last time he saw it like this was during Covid.”
When she arrived shortly after 10am, queues were winding up and down outside of Terminal 2 and she spent about 45 minutes outside before she could get inside the terminal for her flight home.
While she remains uncertain about the impact of the power outage on her flight to Philadelphia, and despite “line jumping” from other passengers eager to get ahead, she seemed relieved just to be indoors.
“Ours is at 1.55pm so we should still make it and as of right now it’s still running on time,” she said. “We have been hearing agents yelling the flights that are coming up.”
While she was speaking to The Irish Times, a United Airlines worker shouted: “Anyone for Washington?”
“They’ve been doing that, and outside too,” she said adding that passengers with imminent flights are being brought to the front of the lines.
A fellow member of her tour group received an alert from Aer Lingus informing him of the power outage.
“American [Airlines] never sent anything out,” she said.
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