Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Belgium faces its coldest Christmas in 15 years. NMBS keeps Brussels-South, Antwerp-Central, Ghent Sint-Pieters, and Liège-Guillemins open overnight. Securail supervises, while Temmerman coordinates with local homeless shelters.
As GVA News reported, Belgium is experiencing extreme winter weather. Christmas Day was the coldest in 15 years. Nighttime temperatures regularly fall below zero. Officials mentioned that to protect people from the cold, the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB) will keep 4 major stations open overnight. These stations are Brussels-South, Antwerp-Central, Ghent Sint-Pieters, and Liège-Guillemins.
What measures are NMBS taking to protect the homeless during the cold snap?
Officials mentioned that homeless people can use the heated areas in the stations. The railway security service, Securail, supervises the facilities. The stations provide seating and restrooms for visitors. Anyone who cannot get into a local shelter or chooses to stay at the station is allowed to spend the night.
“We’ll naturally consult with the official local homeless organisations first to see if there’s room there,”
Temmerman explains.
“A train station isn’t always the ideal place to stay overnight.”
There have been very cold events in Belgium over the last few years. During the 2020-2021 winter, there were areas of Belgium that were below -10 °C. During these extreme cold event times, local governments will open warming shelters and even make large train stations open overnight to help those in need who may not have access to warm accommodations. The NMBS railway works with its subsidiary (Securail) to provide a safe, heated place for individuals who will be at the key railway stations when freezing weather conditions occur.
