Belgium: Antwerp apartment fire kills six, injures dozens.

Shotlist Antwerp, Belgium - July 1, 2026 1. Various of apartment building damaged by fire 2. Various of rescue staff, media staff around building, police line, rescue vehicles 3. SOUNDBITE (English) Els van Doesburg, Acting Mayor of Antwerp (starting with shot 2/partially overlaid with shot 4): "It is an incredibly sad day for our city. This is something that happens very rarely in Antwerp. This is definitely the biggest fire in [terms of] the human lives that were lost in recent history." SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE 4. Ambulance moving SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE 5. Various of apartment building damaged by fire Storyline At least six people died and dozens were injured after a major apartment fire broke out Wednesday morning in the Belgian port city of Antwerp. Local police and fire services said Antwerp Fire Zone was called at 09:53 to a blaze in a Left Bank apartment block housing about 200 residents. All residents of the affected building have been evacuated, with sixty people from an adjacent block also moved and sheltered at a residential care center across the street. Though the blaze has been extinguished, firefighters continue searching inside the building for possible victims. "It is an incredibly sad day for our city. This is something that happens very rarely in Antwerp. This is definitely the biggest fire in [terms of] the human lives that were lost in recent history," said Els van Doesburg, Acting Mayor of Antwerp. Authorities have since activated a medical intervention plan. Fire services urged people to avoid the area and advised residents affected by smoke to keep doors and windows closed and, if necessary, switch off ventilation systems. Police confirmed the blaze began on the ground floor, though the cause remains unclear. [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland]