An arsonist deliberately set fire to a family home in the Brussels municipality of Molenbeek-Saint-Jean on Friday morning.
Neighbours managed to rescue the residents – a mother and her four children – and extinguished the fire before emergency services arrived, according to reports by La Capitale and the Brussels Fire Brigade.
The Brussels Public prosecutor’s office has been informed, and an investigation has been launched, confirmed the Brussels West police zone.
Security footage shows a man wearing a cap and hoodie attempting to ignite the front door of the home on Avenue Edmond Candries four times at around 05:45 on Friday morning.
He appears to be using an improvised Molotov cocktail. Flames finally erupted during the fourth attempt, after which the man fled—pausing briefly to film the fire with his smartphone.
Shortly after, nearby residents and a passing cyclist rushed to the scene to combat the fire and assist the family.
A ladder was used to help the mother and three of her children escape through a first-floor window. The eldest son was escorted out through the garden once the flames were extinguished.
"We were alerted at 5:52 a.m. and dispatched two fire trucks, two ladder trucks, a command vehicle, a specialised emergency team, and an ambulance," said Brussels Fire Brigade spokesperson Walter Derieuw. “We treated one individual for smoke inhalation at the scene.”
The fire caused significant damage to the home, rendering it temporarily uninhabitable. Speaking to *La Capitale*, the homeowner suggested that the arson might be linked to an ongoing feud among Brussels influencers, in which she has been entangled for some time.
