Aarschot (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The train service from Aarschot to Heist-op-den-Berg was put on hold on Tuesday afternoon when the body of someone was found close to the railroad tracks in Booischot, a tiny village within Heist-op-den-Berg in the province of Antwerp. This situation caused a halt in both directions for the local rail route.
The incident was confirmed by Infrabel, Belgium’s rail infrastructure manager, which stated that services were interrupted following the grim discovery.
“Train traffic between Aarschot and Heist-op-den-Berg was interrupted Tuesday afternoon in both directions after a body was found next to the tracks in Booischot,”
Infrabel said in a brief statement carried by local media. The exact time of discovery, the identity of the deceased, and the cause of death were not immediately disclosed, as is standard in the early stages of such investigations.
How did authorities respond to the discovery?
Immediately after the body was found, policemen, first aiders, and representatives from the public prosecutor’s office arrived at the scene. The railway track had been blocked to give investigators the chance to study the situation, preserve any evidence, and establish the circumstances of death. This is standard procedure in Belgium in cases when there is an assumption that someone died either on the tracks or close to them. So far the police haven’t provided information as to whether the person died because of a train collision, suicide, or anything else.
“An investigation is underway to establish the identity of the deceased and the exact circumstances of the death,”
a police spokesperson said, according to initial reports. Until the scene is cleared and safety checks are completed, train services on the affected section remain suspended, with replacement bus services or alternative routing advised for passengers.
Where exactly did the incident take place?
The incident took place in Booischot, a small town in the municipality of Heist-op-den-Berg in the northern Belgian province of Antwerp. The part of the railway track connecting Aarschot, Flemish Brabant, and Heist-op-den-Berg is one of those lines that link small villages to big cities such as Leuven, Brussels, and Antwerp. Any disruption on that route affects the whole Flemish train network system. As it has been already mentioned, Booischot is primarily a rural village. The sight of emergency vehicles and investigation teams around the railway track attracted the attention of the local inhabitants. According to the local press, the area where the tracks are located was closed to access for several hours while the body was being examined by forensics experts.
Have similar incidents occurred recently in Belgium?
This Booischot case comes hot on the heels of other similar occurrences in recent weeks. Two bodies, that of a 22-year-old man and an 18-year-old woman, were discovered on the railway tracks near a level crossing in Grez-Doiceau, Walloon Brabant on 27 August 2026. Train service from Wavre to Sint-Joris-Weert was stopped for several hours in the morning before being resumed in the same day. The discovery of the bodies has been confirmed by the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Walloon Brabant, and an investigation has already been launched by the same, but the cause of their deaths has not yet been established.Â
Earlier on, on 17 August 2026, train service from Leuven to Haacht was suspended due to an “incident with a person” reported in Wespelaar, Flemish Brabant, according to Infrabel. Though not much is known about this, such a description in Belgian rail reporting almost always denotes either death or grave injuries sustained on or around the tracks. Historical figures also point out that “body on the track” incidents in stations like Antwerp-Berchem have resulted in scores of delays and cancellations.
