A code yellow warning has been issued for heavy rainfall expected this afternoon and night in Brussels, as well as in all Walloon provinces, Limburg and the Flemish Brabant.
Belgium's Royal Meteorological Institute (RMI) has issued a code yellow warning which will come into force from Monday afternoon at 14:00 until Tuesday morning at 08:00. The weather agency has predicted that, in the course of the afternoon, an active precipitation zone will reach the country from the west and southwest, with a chance of some thunder.
"Over the southeastern half of the country, we expect between 20 and 35 litres per square metre of precipitation, while locally, heavier rain could fall in these areas during this period," the agency noted. Over the north-western part of Belgium, slightly less precipitation is forecast here, somewhere between 10 and 20 litres per square metre.
Therefore, the warning only applies to Wallonia, Brussels, Limburg and Flemish Brabant. "This precipitation zone will leave our regions again on Tuesday morning via the east and southeast."
The Federal Public Service Home Affairs also activated the number 1722. Anyone requiring assistance from the fire brigade in the event of storm and/or flooding can apply via the e-counter www.1722.be or call 1722.
The number 1722 is only for situations that are not life-threatening to avoid overloading the 112 emergency centres and not to keep people in life-threatening situations waiting. In potentially life-threatening situations, people should still call 112.
This week's forecast
Overall, Monday will be cloudy, windy, chilly and drizzly with periods of rain or drizzle, much more like an early autumnal day than what is expected for the middle of the summer. Highs will not reach above 17°C in the High Fens and 21°C in the centre of Belgium.
"A moderate to fairly strong and sometimes strong southwest wind will blow at the sea. Gusts could reach between 50 and 65 km/h," RMI warned.
Early on Tuesday will be mostly dry, but during the day the atmosphere will change with expected showers. Locally, there may be thunderstorms. It may become mostly dry over the west and northwest during the afternoon, again with strong winds at sea. Wednesday will be cloudy with showers that can be intense and a chance of thunderstorms.
Bad weather is expected to continue on Thursday, but starting from Friday and Saturday, it will be significantly less wet and calmer than the previous days. In between small showers, there will be some longer dry spells with occasional clearings. Sunday is likely to see a new rain zone enter the country from the west, with highs hovering around 19 to 20°C throughout the week.
In the longer term, the temperature is set to rise slightly, while the constant rainfall is expected to become sunnier from next Tuesday.
