2023-11-01 21:06:33
In Belgium, the Royal Meteorological Institute issued an “orange” alert on the Flemish coast and “yellow” for the rest of the country, due to the intense winds expected on Thursday, which might reach up to 110 km/h.
Several cities – Antwerp, Brussels and even Liège – have announced the preventive closure of their green spaces from late Wednesday followingnoon as well as all day Thursday due to the strong gusts forecast.
The wind intensity is expected to increase to 6 or 7 Beaufort inland and between 9 and 10 Beaufort on the coast.
The 1722 activated
The call number 1722 for non-urgent firefighter interventions was activated on Wednesday by the Federal Public Service (FPS) Interior, due to the storm forecasts announced by the Royal Meteorological Institute
The FPS also recommends using the electronic counter 1722.be, because “a request submitted electronically” will be “directly transmitted” to the emergency services. “If you call 1722, it is first the operators of the 112 emergency centers who handle calls to this number before transmitting the request to the firefighters,” warns the public body. The electronic counters of the local emergency services are also accessible.
Furthermore, the FPS indicates that the wait for the intervention of the firefighters can be more or less long depending on the urgency of the requests.
This is why citizens are advised not to disturb emergency areas when the damage caused can be repaired by them or by a professional. This might be, for example, a fallen tree in the garden, a power outage or a damaged veranda.
Many trains canceled
Practically no P trains will run on Thursday during peak hours while certain IC connections will be canceled, warns the Belgian National Railway Company (SNCB) on its website on Wednesday, which adds that no train “will run between Belgium either and France.
These precautions naturally have consequences on the rail network which will be severely disrupted, writes SNCB. “Some trains will be canceled. Others will circulate according to a route or an adapted schedule,” indicates the latter.
Concretely, the IC connections Ostend-Ghent-Saint-Pierre-Antwerp, Kortrijk-Brussels-Schaerbeek, Antwerp-Central-Lier-Hasselt, Brussels-Midi-Namur-Liège-Saint-Lambert, Tournai-Lille-Flandres and Antwerp-Central -Mechelen-Brussels-Midi will not be insured.
Others like Kortrijk-Mouscron-Lille-Flandres, Tournai-Bruxelles-Brussels Airport, Brussels Airport-Braine-le-Comte-Mons, Brussels-Midi-Namur-Arlon/Luxembourg, Quiévrain-Bruxelles-Liège-Guillemins, Brussels Airport -Namur-Dinant or Mons-Liège-Guillemins-Herstal will be modified.
“Most S and L trains are running normally,” adds the SNCB, which nevertheless advises travelers to plan their journeys in advance via its website or application.
The railway infrastructure manager, Infrabel, had already announced a whole series of measures earlier in the day. No trains, for example, ran between Bruges and the coast on Thursday while national journeys travel at a maximum of 80 km/h.
Several recommendations
The national crisis center has issued some recommendations for citizens. He therefore recommends checking that “no tile is detached from the roof, fixing loose objects in the garden (furniture, trampoline), or even ensuring that domestic animals are well inside”, informs BX1.
Brussels: regional parks, gardens and woods closed this Wednesday
Parks, nature reserves and woods managed by the Brussels-Capital Region will be closed on Wednesday from 6:00 p.m. due to the strong gusts of wind forecast, Brussels Environment said on Tuesday. Notices will be posted at entrances and wardens will inform the public. The reopening of these green spaces has not yet been determined and will take place depending on the weather forecast.
Among the green spaces in Brussels affected by these restrictions: the Soignes forest, which extends over the municipalities of Watermael-Boitsfort, Auderghem, Woluwe-Saint-Pierre and Uccle, the Scheutbos park in Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, that of Fiftieth anniversary in Etterbeek and Brussels City, the Laerbeek woods in Jette and the Abbaye de la Cambre in Ixelles.
The Brussels police have notably announced that the Bois de la Cambre will be closed this Wednesday from 8:00 p.m. Its reopening is scheduled for Thursday, November 2 around 6:00 p.m., barring any incidents.
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