Antwerp Central railway station has reopened after having been evacuated for four hours on Friday morning. Rails services to, from and through the station have resumed as have tram services through the Diamant underground tram stop that is under the station. At around 7am two suspicious suitcases (photo above) were found on the side of the station adjacent to the Mediaplein. The owner of the suitcases has since been found and taken away fort questioning by police.
Antwerp
Antwerp Central Station reopens
Published:
Antwerp Central station was evacuated for several hours this morning after reports of a suspicious package. The bomb disposal service Dovo went to the station. After an inspection of the suitcases Dovo said that there was no risk.
Two suspicious suitcases
Wouter Bruyns of the Antwerp Local Police Service told VRT News that "Two suitcases that had been left in suspicious circumstances were spotted at around 7 am. We asked everyone in the station to leave. We also asked to for services to Antwerp Central Station to be suspended and for the trains that were in the station to be driven outside”.
The owner of the two abandoned suitcases in Antwerp Central Station that led to an evacuation of the building is being questioned about the incident. This will shed light on whether the incident was the result of an innocent oversight or whether the suitcases were abandoned deliberately in the hope of causing a bomb scare.
Rail services to and from Antwerp Central resumed at around 12 noon after more than four hours. It will be several hours yet before services have completely returned to normal. The Belgian rail company NMBS says that it hopers that services will have completely returned to normal by Friday evening’s rush hour. Tram services through the Diamant underground tram station have also resumed.