Veltem-Beisem (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – A fire around 22:40 on May 23, 2025, destroyed the Winksele-Veltem-Beisem scout building in Veltem. The asbestos roof raised health concerns. Lt. Johan De Greef led the response; no injuries reported.
As VRT News reported, firefighters were called to a fire in Veltem-Beisem, a village in the municipality of Harent, province of Flemish Brabant, Belgium, around 22:40 on May 23, 2025. The first report said it might be a grass fire. But when they got there, they saw a scout building on fire. The building was far from the road, which made it hard for the fire trucks to get to the fire. Firefighters had to run hoses a long way to reach the building.
The fire department managed to get the fire under control. They mentioned that the building was old and made of materials that burned easily. Lieutenant Johan De Greef, who was in charge of the firefighters, said the old building was destroyed because of how it was built and how hot the fire was.
What caused the Veltem Scout building fire, and how will asbestos impact the area?
According to officials, the fire at the scout building caused worries about the environment and people’s health. The roof of the building had asbestos, a dangerous material. When the roof caught fire, the asbestos broke apart and spread into the air.
They mentioned that there was no wind, so the asbestos stayed close to the building. Police put up tape to keep people away and safe. Now, experts will check the area and clean up the asbestos carefully to protect everyone from getting sick.
The local government is still working at the fire site in Veltem to see how much damage there is. The building that burned down was used by the Winksele-Veltem-Beisem scouts, a youth group in the area. Even though the building was old, the scouts used it a lot.
It was mostly used by the older kids in the group, who are between 14 and 16 years old. The building was used for meetings and activities, and also held all the scouts’ materials and equipment. The fire destroyed the building and everything inside.
A scout group is dealing with a lot of sadness because they lost another building. This is the 2nd time that they’ve had a building damaged or destroyed. The first time was in 2024 when someone damaged a different building they used.
The cause of the fire is still unknown. The police are taking the matter seriously and have hired a fire expert to investigate what happened. No one was inside the building when the fire started, and no one was injured.
