Ten years after the 22 March 2016 attacks in Brussels, 62-year-old Daniëlle Iwens still lives with the immense impact of the tragedy.
On that morning, Iwens was working at the check-in desk for Aviapartner in Brussels Airport’s departure hall. Two explosions shattered the routine, turning her workday into a desperate bid for survival.
“I immediately knew it wasn’t right – this was an attack,” she recalled in a video interview with Belga. The chaos intensified with a second explosion, forcing her to run for her life.
What she witnessed during her escape from the departure hall left a lasting impression. “It was horrific,” she said. “That moment created a divide: there’s a life before the attacks and a life after. The life after is much less. My independence, freedom, and carefree existence – it’s all gone.”
Even a decade later, her sense of security hasn’t returned. Iwens avoids crowds and instinctively looks for exits wherever she goes. “You’re constantly living at a heightened stress level, and you carry that with you.”
Unexpected triggers can transport her back to that fateful day. “If a plane breaks through the sound barrier, I freeze. Driving at night and hitting fog can bring me back to the airport, and I can’t continue driving – someone else has to take over. Even after 10 years, I’m still seeing a psychologist.”
Last year, Iwens shared her hope that the long-standing insurance disputes would be resolved by the 10th anniversary of the attacks. But that hope has not been fulfilled.
“The insurance cases are still not completely settled. Ten years of stress – it’s just too much! We’ve received a pension, but we don’t know if we’ll have to return it. The uncertainty weighs heavily.”
The attacks permanently altered her life. She worked at the airport for 26 years but was ultimately forced to stop. “It’s such a heavy toll. Often I think, if only I hadn’t been there, if only it hadn’t happened. If there were a reset button—a way to erase all memories and start over—I’d press it in an instant. But instead, you’re left carrying this awful burden with you always.”
