A serious fire broke out in a laundrette in the Brussels municipality of Saint-Gilles on Monday afternoon. The fire did not result in injuries but the self-service laundry suffered considerable damage.
The fire broke out in the late afternoon on Monday on rue de la Victoire, fire brigade spokesperson Walter Derieuw told Belga News Agency.
"One of our ambulances was the first to arrive there and the paramedics evacuated the customers of the laundrette and the residents of the flats above," Derieuw said. "They then emptied their fire extinguisher to fight the flames. In the process, they got down on their knees to stay under the smoke."
The paramedics were soon joined by firefighters who further extinguished the fire. The laundrette was badly damaged by the fire and will be out of use, temporarily. According to Derieuw, the cause of the fire was accidental.
Credit: Brussels Fire Brigade
The flats above the laundrette on the three upper floors were ventilated and checked for carbon monoxide (CO) to prevent poisoning.
"The homes are habitable but the electricity must be restored, as it was cut off before the fire was extinguished," Derieuw noted.
