Firefighters successfully contained a major fire at Stevens Recycling, a metal recycling company in Brussels, at around 02:30 on Wednesday morning, reported Brussels Fire Brigade spokesperson Walter Derieuw.
Alphonse Stevens, the owner of the family-run business located along the docks on Quai des Armateurs, said he noticed nothing amiss when he left at around 19:00 on Tuesday, but the fire began around 21:00.
The fire broke out in a pile of scrap metal scheduled for river transport on Wednesday, which had been there for eight days.
Credit: Brussels Fire Brigade
Describing it as a "self-starting fire", Stevens suggested possible self-combustion of the stored metal. The precise accidental cause is yet to be determined, according to firefighters.
On Tuesday evening, a large plume of smoke was visible for several kilometres. As a precaution, residents in the Allée Verte area of Schaerbeek and northern Brussels, as well as parts of Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, were advised to close their doors and windows. The smell of burning was reported as far away as Dilbeek.
Credit: Brussels Fire Brigade
The firefighting operation involved two ladder trucks, two fire engines and two water tankers. Equipment from the company was utilised to move the metal scrap and cool it layer by layer.
Credit: Brussels Fire Brigade
This is not the first instance of a fire at Stevens Recycling. On 6 June 2024, a fire broke out in a heap of old washing machines and boilers at the same site. Similar industrial fires have occurred at other Stevens Recycling locations.
Alphonse Stevens acknowledged that such incidents are possible, citing hidden lithium-ion batteries as potential culprits, but could not confirm if they caused Tuesday's fire.
