Two people were taken to hospital with smoke intoxication following an apartment fire in Sint-Lambrechts-Woluwe on Sunday night, which is thought to have originated from an electric blanket, reported the Brussels Fire Brigade.
The emergency services were notified of the fire in the 12-storey building on Paul Heymanslaan at around 02:55. When the fire brigade arrived, the fire was found to be raging in the lounge of a flat on the sixth floor of the building.
“The residents had made their way to safety via their balconies of their neighbours,” said Fire Brigade Spokesperson Walter Derieuw. “We evacuated both them and their neighbours from the flats to the left and right of the affected flat. There were seven people involved. The residents of the affected flat were slightly overcome by the smoke and were taken to hospital for care.”
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“The cause of the fire is in all probability due to a malfunctioning electric blanket, which had been left in the lounge,” said the spokesperson. “There was also no smoke detector in the flat, so the residents were very lucky to have woken up.” The affected flat did suffer severe damage and is therefore uninhabitable.
The fire brigade offers some tips on how to use an electric blanket safely: “Do not fold the blanket but roll it. Folding can break the electrical wiring and cause a short circuit. Also, unplug the blanket when not in use. This reduces the risk of overheating and fire. Replace the blanket on time as age can also break the wiring, and put a smoke detector in every room where you use an electric blanket.”
