One person dies in Brussels apartment fire as crews complete their search

Brussels firefighters found one person dead while searching an apartment building on Avenue Louise on Wednesday 9 September 2026, after responding to a fire at about 05:35. The blaze has been extinguished and the emergency intervention has ended, [HLN reports](https://www.hln.be/brussel/dode-bij-brand-in-appartementsgebouw-aan-louizalaan-in-brussel~a075916b/), citing the Brussels fire brigade.

Updated: 9 September 2026, 22:29 CEST. This article reflects the latest reporting verified during research.

The death is a significant update to the initial report that firefighters were still searching for casualties. According to [BRUZZ](https://www.bruzz.be/actua/veiligheid/brand-flatgebouw-aan-louizalaan-2026-09-09), crews discovered the deceased person inside the flat where the fire had burned. Whether that person lived in the apartment had not been established in the reporting reviewed.

For other residents, the immediate consequence is displacement. The seventh-floor apartments have been declared uninhabitable, [The Brussels Times reports](https://www.brusselstimes.com/2309591/one-person-dead-after-fire-broke-in-apartment-building-on-avenue-louise-tbtb), citing the fire service. The newspaper also reports that emergency responders activated the brigade’s internal emergency plan and arranged psychosocial support for those affected.

BRUZZ places the affected flats above the Galerie Louise shopping arcade. Fire brigade spokesperson Walter Derieuw told the outlet that several dozen residents were evacuated, initially to a lobby and then to a reception centre organised by the municipality and the Red Cross. Ixelles mayor Romain De Reusme told BRUZZ that the municipality was providing food, drinks, phone charging and help with administrative matters.

The response involved four fire engines, two aerial ladders and two command vehicles, alongside ambulance personnel and a specialist medical team, according to The Brussels Times. Police from the Brussels-Capital/Ixelles zone also attended, the newspaper reported.

The disruption extended to the morning journey through the neighbourhood. HLN reports that tram services were interrupted during the emergency but subsequently resumed. Its updated account therefore supersedes the earlier transport warnings issued while crews were working.

The Brussels public prosecutor’s office is investigating the circumstances, BRUZZ reports. The accounts reviewed do not establish the cause, and no confirmed explanation should be inferred from the scale of the emergency response. HLN also reports that the full extent of the damage remained unknown. The next substantive updates concern the investigation’s findings and arrangements for residents whose apartments remain uninhabitable; the reviewed reports give no timetable for their return.