All train traffic to and from Brussels-Midi station has been suspended since 14:20 and all platforms in the station have been evacuated, rail operator SNCB-NMBS stated on Monday afternoon.
Federal police have confirmed that a suspicious package was found in a train. "It concerns a suspicious bag that was found on a train," said An Berger, spokesperson for the federal police.
"The train had to remain stationary at Brussels-South so that the suspicious bag could be examined. The train was completely evacuated and a perimeter was established, which is being secured by the railway police and Securail. DOVO is now on site to further investigate the bag," she said.
SNCB confirmed that all domestic train traffic as well as the Eurostar has been suspended.
The station itself has not been evacuated, and commuters with a valid ticket can use STIB public transport.
Second evacuation in two months
About six weeks ago, on March 23, train traffic around Brussels-South was also suspended, and the station was evacuated after three suspicious packages were found.
One of those packages, a yellow-green plastic bag, was lying on the luggage rack of carriage 62107 of the train between Charleroi and Antwerp.
When the bag was discovered, the train was brought to a halt at Brussels-Midi station and the police evacuated the station. It was only after about three hours that the station could be reopened. In total, trains were delayed by three hundred hours, and SNCB cancelled 300 trains.
This is a developing story and will be updated as new information comes in.
