A man died on Saturday in Brussels after having his upper body trapped in a metal curtain at a metro station.
The death was observed around 4:30 a.m. in the city center, at the Rogier metro station, by the firefighters who intervened on the spot.
They had to extricate the victim, but were unable to resuscitate him, explained a spokesperson for the fire department.
The identity was not immediately known.
The fourth since March
“This is the fourth such incident since March and this time unfortunately with deadly consequences,” added this spokesperson, Walter Derieuw.
The Brussels media had relayed in recent weeks several cases of accidents at the time of the opening of the automatic curtains.
So far it was only “stuck legs”, according to Mr. Derieuw.
“Attempted intrusion” in the subway
A police investigation has been opened to determine the circumstances of the fatal accident and whether or not the victim was “a homeless person or a person under the influence” (drugs or alcohol), said the fire department.
According to Stib, the company operating public transport in Brussels, the accident is “clearly” related to “attempted intrusion” in the metro, at the usual time when the doors open automatically either “4h30 everywhere”.
“It’s not an infrastructure problem”, assured Cindy Arents, spokesperson for Stib. “For the past year, we have seen an increase in reports of homeless people on the network. We sounded the alarm last fall. We need support from the authorities and competent associations”, she continued.
She rated at “60-70%” this increase in reporting. The progression of precariousness is “a societal phenomenon”, argued Ms Arents, “but it is necessarily felt in public transport”.
