Belgian news in brief, 24 January 2006

Body found at old brewery

A decomposing body was found on Monday in Brussels at the former brewery Wielemans-Ceuppens. The corpse was in a bin liner in a hole near the chimney extraction pipe. Brussels’ court was unable to say whether the body was that of a man or a woman. The feet were tied together and the person had been dead for several months.

Eight people were hospitalised after a fire at a block of flats in Antwerp on Monday afternoon. The blaze at the seven-storey building in Statiestraat broke out at 4.50pm in a studio on the fifth floor. The entire building was evacuated and fire fighters had to help seven residents to get out of the flats. On Tuesday afternoon, three people were still in a serious condition in hospital.

Petrol giant Shell has announced it may close its butane and propane filling station at Neder-over-Heembeek in Flanders. The move, due to the lack of profit at the centre, would lead to 34 redundancies. “The consultation phase with the Company Council will begin as quickly as possibly in accordance with the law”, said Shell in a statement.

A special Belgian police force nicknamed FAST put 101 criminals behind bars in 2005. The Fugitive Active Search Team targeted murderers, rapists and those involved with drugs. Since its creation in 1999, 284 wanted criminals have gone to prison. “The arrest of these criminals is especially important for the complete healing of some victims,” said the federal police in a statement.

[Copyright Expatica News 2006]

Subject: Belgian news