The Crisis Center has adopted a new, faster and stricter procedure for deciding on the closure and evacuation of subways during emergencies, reported Het Nieuwsblad and SudPresse on Friday. This procedure has yet to be approved by the National Security Council.
After the attack on 22 March 2016 at the Zaventem airport, Interior Minister Jan Jambon's decision to close the Brussels subway took 19 minutes before being carried out. The STIB-MIVB had not been informed in time. "We took into account the evaluation of 22 March and this procedure has been fine-tuned", said the spokesman of the Crisis Center, Peter Mertens. "It has yet to be ratified by the National Security Council."
The decision to evacuate now falls to the Crisis Center, which will inform the federal police. The latter will then directly contact the various transport companies involved.
The Brussels Times
