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The Liège police indicated around 10:30 p.m. that the fire at the Kennedy Tower was under control. The fire, which started shortly before 2 p.m., therefore lasted almost 9 hours.
During a press conference this Monday evening, the mayor of Liège Willy Demeyer announced the death of one person, according to a first provisional report. Two people are currently in absolute emergency.
The story of the drama
Several times a year, the Liège firefighters organize life-size exercises aimed at countering any situation. The images are often impressive. We see them harnessed at the top of the finance tower, in full intervention on the Bol d’Air tower or even in the Cointe tunnel. Between fiction and reality, there is only one step. This was crossed this Monday afternoon, with a fire in the Kennedy Tower, in Liège.
It was in a technical shaft of this apartment building that the fire started. The smoke then spread to the upper levels. The occupants were initially asked to confine themselves but, at 4 p.m., the decision to evacuate the tower was taken. “There is a lot of smoke in the evacuation routes, which means that people in the building cannot exit through natural routes without being assisted by the rescue teams,” explained Denis Honders, director of operations. emergency, early in the evening.
Little by little, it was necessary to knock on each door to get the residents out safely. But it was the upper floors which presented great difficulties to the Liège engineers. “The top floors are still inaccessible,” said Jadranka Lozina, spokesperson for the Liège police. “Occupants of these top floors must remain on their balconies. Reinforcements from the Antwerp emergency zone, with large ladders, have arrived. Those from Brussels are on their way. A reinforcement of helicopters from National Defense and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg is on the move to enable helicopter transport. »
Around 8 p.m., in fact, people were airlifted from the roof of the Kennedy Tower before being brought back to the ground. A team of firefighters was also “dropped” on the roof to rescue tenants. The firefighters worked for several more hours, on the one hand to contain the fire, and on the other hand to evacuate the people still trapped.
In the middle of the evening, an initial report showed 5 people taken to hospital for poisoning. Ultimately the toll rose, as Mayor Willy Demeyer announced at the end of the evening. One person has lost his life and two are in absolute emergency.
A dead person
Healthy residents were first taken to a school located a stone’s throw from the tower. “Most of these people have found refuge with their loved ones. Nearly 70 people will be relocated to hotels or to the Cointe sports hall,” the Liège police further indicated.
Around 10:30 p.m., the fire was brought under control by firefighters. Emergency services were carrying out the final evacuations. “Residents of the Kennedy Tower are asked to present themselves this Monday evening with their apartment key to the Liège 1 reception center. The building will remain inaccessible and will be monitored,” warns the Liège police. Residents of the Kennedy Tower who cannot get to the reception center should contact the call center number which has just been activated: 0800/94000.
