42 residents evacuated as fire breaks out at a block of flats
42 residents were evacuated after fire broke out at a block of flats on the Zelfbestuurstraat in the Brussels municipality of Anderlecht on Saturday evening. One resident of the 7-story building was taken to hospital.
The fire started at around 10pm on Saturday in the kitchen of one of the flats on the fourth floor of the building. Walter Derieuw of the Brussels Fire Service told journalists that “The fire started accidentally when a spark ignited a pan containing heating oil. In an attempt to extinguish the blaze, the resident of the flat tipped the pan over which served to make matters worse”.
The kitchen and living room of the flat were destroyed in the blaze and the flat has been declared uninhabitable. The large amount of smoke created by the fire left the Brussels Fire Service with no option other than to evacuate all 42 residents from the building. They were assisted in the evacuation by officers from the Brussels South Local Police Service.
Mr Derieuw added that "There was carbon monoxide present in the flats on 5th, 6th and 7th floors. This meant that they needed to be thoroughly ventilated because their residents could return. This took around two hours”.
