A fire has severely damaged a terrace house in the West Flemish city of Kortijk. Flames engulfed the building on Tuesday morning. A father and his 2 children that live at the house got out alive. However, the man suffered burns and has been taken to a specialised burns unit for treatment.
Father sustains burns as terrace house is gutted by fire, his 2 children are unharmed
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The fire broke out on Tuesday morning at around 8 am at a house on ‘t Plein in Kortrijk. The fire service dispatched several units to tackle the blaze at the house. The fire reportedly started on the first floor. Sebastien Lefebvre of the local fire service told VRT News that “When we arrived, the flames were already bursting out of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd floors”.
Firefighters were able to get the fire under control quickly. “It is an old house that is largely made of wood. There are still some small fires blazing inside, so we will remain onsite to extinguish those”.
Father and 2 children rescued
There were no fatalities. The Mayor of Kortrijk Ruth Vandenberghe (local list) told VRT News that "A father and his 2 children live in the house. The 2 children are safe and are with their mum. The father has been taken to the Burns Centre in Neder-Over-Heembeek (Brussels) for treatment to burns on his arms”.
Mr Lefebvre of the fire service added that when firefighters arrived at the scene the man and his children were already outside the building. The residents of the two neighbouring buildings were able to leave their homes unharmed. The buildings next door to and behind the house sustained some smoke damage.
The cause of the fire is as yet unknown.