The Ministry of the Interior has decided to temporarily activate the 1722 number following a severe weather warning issued on Friday morning by the Royal Meteorological Institute (RMI).
The purpose of 1722 is to prevent emergency numbers from being overwhelmed by calls for assistance that can wait. In the event of storm damage or water damage requiring fire brigade assistance, this number should be dialled. If a life is in danger, call 112.
The Ministry also recommends using the 1722.be hotline, as it is considered to be "the most direct way of requesting assistance from the fire brigade in situations where no life is in danger."
The RMI has placed the whole of Belgium under a yellow alert for rain on Friday. The provinces of Namur, Liège and Luxembourg will be under yellow alert until Saturday morning. The Institute says that rainfall totals could exceed 25 litres/m2 in several places, and could even reach 30-35 litres/m2 locally.
