A fire broke out on July 14, 2026, at a construction and renovation site in central Brussels at Place de Brouckere, killing six workers trapped in one of the building’s elevators, officials said [1, 2]. The large mixed-use building under renovation housed offices, apartments, and a hotel but was not yet permanently occupied [1].
The fire started on the building’s second floor at 7:50 a.m. and quickly spread through elevator shafts to lower and underground levels, according to fire department spokesperson Walter Derieuw. "Firefighters were alerted to the fire on the second floor of the Oxy building at 7.50am ... The fire spread through the elevator shaft and was extinguished in a little over an hour," he said [1].
Between 200 and 250 workers were on site when the fire broke out and were evacuated [3, 4, 2, 5]. Three people suffered burn injuries and were admitted to hospital. One firefighter was treated for heatstroke [3, 1, 6].
Brussels labour auditor Brecht Speybrouck confirmed that six bodies were found inside one of the six elevators during the fire [1, 2]. He said, "Six bodies were discovered in one of six elevators in the building" [1]. Authorities had searched extensively before discovering the bodies in the evening [2].
Brussels King Philippe and Prime Minister De Wever visited the fire site later that day [2]. Mayor Philippe Close called the fire "a tragedy that deeply affects us," extending condolences to the victims, their families, the injured, and workers present [6].
The cause of the fire remains under investigation by labour prosecutor authorities [1, 5, 6]. Officials have not reported any missing workers following the discovery of the six deceased [1, 2].
Emergency crews extinguished the blaze after approximately one hour of firefighting and rescue operations [1].
