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🇧🇪 Belgium /Disasters & Emergencies

Fire in Vilvoorde Apartment Caused by Phone Charger

From VRT NWS · () Dutch

Translated from Dutch and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • A phone charger caused a fire in a 12th-floor apartment in Vilvoorde, Belgium.
  • Police and firefighters evacuated the building and temporarily closed the street before bringing the incident under control.
  • No one was injured, and residents were allowed to return after the intervention ended.

A phone charger caught fire in a 12th-floor apartment in Vilvoorde, prompting the evacuation of the building and a temporary street closure.

The resident was not present.

· Gert MathayThe Vilvoorde-Machelen police spokesman described the circumstances when the fire began.

The fire broke out at about 6:40 a.m. in an apartment on Twee Leeuwenweg. The resident was not home, according to Gert Mathay, a spokesman for the Vilvoorde-Machelen police zone.

Fire brigade spokesman Wouter Jeanfils said the charger set a carpet alight, after which it began to smoulder. Because the building was a high-rise, emergency crews deployed extensive resources as a standard precaution. The building’s compartmentalized design helped contain the fire, which eventually went out on its own.

It was an accidental fire: a mobile-phone charger had caught fire.

· Gert MathayHe identified the cause of the fire.

Police closed the street and arranged a diversion while the building was evacuated. Residents were soon allowed back inside, and the road reopened. The operation ended at about 7:30 a.m. No injuries were reported.

It was a high-rise, so extensive resources are deployed as standard.

· Wouter JeanfilsThe fire brigade spokesman explained the size of the emergency response.
About this summary

Originally published by VRT NWS in Dutch. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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