A fire that broke out shortly before 10:00 local time on Wednesday in a high-rise apartment building in the Belgian port city of Antwerp has killed at least six people, according to local police. The blaze, which began on the eighth floor of the block on August Vermeylenlaan in the Linkeroever neighbourhood, sent thick black smoke billowing across the area and prompted a large-scale emergency response. Fire brigade spokesperson Marie De Clercq described the operation as complex, with poor visibility and dense smoke inside the building hampering efforts to bring the flames under control.

Belgian authorities confirmed the recovery of multiple bodies, though the precise death toll remained provisional as search teams continued to work through the building. Police spokesperson Kim Bastiaens told Flemish broadcasters that at least five people had died, while other official statements and media reports cited six fatalities. A significant number of seriously injured residents were transported to nearby hospitals, and a medical intervention plan was activated to prevent the saturation of emergency departments. Among those evacuated was former Antwerp mayor Bob Cools, 92, who lived on the eighth floor and was taken to hospital for checks, according to his son-in-law quoted in Belgian newspapers.

Dramatic footage circulated on social media showed a man climbing from his balcony into a neighbour’s window to escape the smoke, while other residents waited on terraces to be rescued by fire brigade ladders. One resident, Geert Dewulf, told public broadcaster VRT that he and his family barricaded themselves inside their flat on the tenth floor after corridors filled with smoke, and were eventually brought to safety by firefighters. Authorities advised those in the surrounding area to keep windows and doors shut and to switch off ventilation systems because of the heavy smoke.

The cause of the fire has not been determined. Witnesses quoted in the Flemish daily De Standaard said maintenance work was being carried out on the roof at the time, while other early reports suggested a technical fault on the ground floor. Police have appointed a fire investigator and requested the assistance of a forensic laboratory, but stressed that it was too early to draw conclusions. The building, which houses more than 200 people across 80 apartments, remained cordoned off as emergency crews continued their search and the fire was not yet fully extinguished by early afternoon.