Driver dies after four-vehicle crash on Brussels’ Avenue Van Praet

Updated 23 August 2026 — A driver critically injured in a four-vehicle collision on Avenue Van Praet in Brussels at about 06:15 on Thursday, 13 August, died in hospital that same day, Brussels-Capital/Ixelles police confirmed to BRUZZ. Police said another driver, who allegedly initiated the collision, was under the influence of alcohol and was taken into custody.

The crash happened on the carriageway towards the A12, according to BRUZZ. Brussels-Capital/Ixelles police said traffic had slowed beside roadworks while a lorry completed a manoeuvre. A vehicle then struck traffic waiting in the queue, causing a chain collision involving four vehicles.

Brussels fire brigade spokesperson Walter Derieuw told Belga on the morning of the crash that emergency teams had taken two people to hospital: one in a critical condition and another with minor injuries. BX1 independently reported the same casualty count and said investigators had not yet established the precise circumstances at that stage.

Police subsequently confirmed to BRUZZ that officers’ findings at the scene showed the driver accused of causing the collision had consumed alcohol. The Brussels public prosecutor’s office opened an investigation, while the technical and scientific police laboratory and a traffic expert examined the scene, according to the police account carried by BRUZZ.

La Dernière Heure reported a specific blood-alcohol level and an alleged speed close to 100 kilometres per hour. Police told BRUZZ they could not confirm either figure. Belgium Pulse is therefore not treating those details as established facts. Authorities have also withheld the identities and personal details of the people involved out of respect for the victim’s family and the investigation.

The collision occurred on one of northern Brussels’ main approaches to the A12. Federal Police traffic data show that officers recorded hundreds of speeding offences at monitoring points on Avenue Van Praet during the first half of 2025, although those figures do not establish the cause of this crash.

For the victim’s relatives, the case has moved from a serious-injury investigation to a fatal collision inquiry. The Brussels prosecutor’s office will now assess the expert findings, alcohol evidence and sequence of impacts before deciding on any charges. No further police update or judicial decision had been announced by 23 August.