The identities of the six workers who died in Tuesday morning's devastating fire at the OXY construction site in central Brussels are gradually emerging, as investigators continue to examine the circumstances surrounding one of Belgium's deadliest workplace accidents in recent years.
The fire started at around 07:30 inside one of the elevator shafts of the redevelopment project on Place de Brouckère, trapping workers inside. Around 250 people were on site when the fire started. After the construction site was evacuated, six workers were reported missing. Rescue teams later recovered six bodies from one of the elevators, while a search of the second shaft found no additional victims, according to the Brussels Labour Inspectorate.
The site has since been sealed off while fire experts, forensic investigators, labour inspectors and police determine what caused the fatal incident.
Four colleagues among the victims
According to Sudinfo, the victims include five Belgian workers and one Romanian national, although formal identification by the Federal Police's Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) unit is still ongoing.
Among those killed were four employees of Limburg-based metal construction company On Time Metalworks (OTM): Stijn, 46, the company's co-chief executive, Koen, 44, Johan, 36, and Jille, 23. Their bodies were recovered from inside the elevator where the fire broke out.
Stijn would have celebrated his 47th birthday next week. Koen, from Sint-Truiden, had been married since August 2024 and was the father of four children. Johan Boesmans, originally from Lommel, had worked for OTM for several years after previously being employed by Eco-Metal in Alken.
Jille's father told HLN: "My wonderful son is no longer alive. We will have to move forward with that realisation.”
The fifth Belgian victim was Mohamed, 23, who had only recently started working for engineering company SPIE. He didn’t even get his first paycheck. The sixth victim was a Romanian worker whose name has not yet been released.
The tragedy also left two other workers with severe burn injuries. They were rescued from the building and transported to the Military Hospital in Neder-over-Heembeek and UZ Gasthuisberg in Leuven for treatment. While doctors had initially described their condition as critical but stable, the Brussels Labour Inspectorate said on Wednesday evening that both men are now considered to be in life-threatening condition following a medical reassessment.
Investigation continues
The exact cause of the fire remains unknown. Authorities have ordered fire and forensic investigations, while Belgium's labour inspection services are also examining whether workplace safety regulations were respected.
