Flemish Brabant’s 112 emergency centre has been switched to the national platform since Tuesday, Federal Minister for Home Affairs Annelies Verlinden (CD&V) announced in a press release.
Flemish Brabant was the penultimate Belgian province to be transferred onto the new platform, with East Flanders due at the end of November.
The transfer to the supra-local platform came at the request of the parliamentary enquiry committee following the attacks of 22 March 2016. By launching a national level, emergency calls from citizens should be answered even faster.
A call to 112 is still first handled at the local switchboard branch from where the call originates, but if, for example, there is understaffing or a breakdown, the call is immediately transferred to an available operator at another switchboard in the same language area. For citizens contacting the emergency switchboard, nothing changes.
"Not only does the service to citizens improve, operators from different provinces can now work together much better," Minister Verlinden said. "This is important, because behind every emergency call is a citizen in distress who needs to be helped quickly and efficiently."
