A fire broke out on Friday evening at the Umicore company site, located in the Hoboken district of Antwerp.
The fire began within a foundry, according to Antwerp firefighters who have assessed the situation as not being severe.
Fire services were on the scene in the early morning working in tandem with Umicore’s specialised fire crew. They have since confirmed that the situation is under control.
Umicore recycles various materials at its Hoboken site. Over the years, several fires have occurred during the recycling processes, but most have been on a small scale.
The most significant incident occurred back in 2020 when a larger fire developed, emitting smoke plumes into the surrounding neighbourhood.
This incident likely contributed to above-average levels of lead being measured in local children during that time period.
