Fire at Istanbul airport blocks air traffic

A huge fire engulfed the cargo section of Istanbul’s international Ataturk airport today and blocked air traffic, television reports said.

Black smoke billowed some 100 feet high into the air, television footage showed.

The fire caused panic at the airport, and authorities were trying to evacuate thousands of people from the nearby terminals.

Firefighters were trying to extinguish the blaze, the cause of which was not immediately clear.

NTV television said some cargo workers may have been trapped inside the blazing cargo building.