Noos News•
A fourth person was found under the rubble of the apartment complex that collapsed yesterday in Antwerp. The police did not reveal the identity of the victim.
An explosion occurred in the building located south of the city yesterday morning, almost completely destroying the upper two floors of the building. The body of a 44-year-old man was quickly recovered, and a second victim was recovered in the afternoon. In the evening, a third victim, a 10-year-old girl, was recovered from under the rubble, according to Belgian media.
The search continued throughout the night. A police spokesman told Belgian media: “We really want to make sure that no one is in the building anymore.” Last night, before the 10-year-old girl was found, at least two people were still missing.
The destruction caused by the explosion in the building yesterday:
Big gas explosion in Antwerp: ‘I think it was an attack’
The search is difficult because the building is very unstable. When firefighters entered yesterday morning, a wall collapsed. Then the fire brigade searched for the victims from outside using a ladder.
Emergency workers also pointed a sound sensor at the building and organized moments of silence to hear if anyone was making noise inside. This resulted in nothing. Thermal cameras and police dogs were also used.
The reason is unknown
How the explosion occurred is still under investigation. A gas explosion was previously mentioned as a possibility. But according to the gas network operator, the gas meters in the building are still intact. This indicates that the explosion did not occur where the gas pipe entered the building.
Antwerp Mayor De Wever visited the explosion site yesterday. Today, King Philippe will visit the site, just as Interior Minister Verlinden reported VRT News.