Father and Son Shot at While Waterskiing in Belgian Canal

A father and his 27-year-old son were shot at with an air rifle while waterskiing on the Zuid-Willemsvaart canal in Dilsen-Stokkem, Limburg province, on Friday afternoon. The incident, which occurred around 5:15 PM in a designated waterski zone, left both victims unharmed, according to VRT NWS. The suspect has been identified by police, and an investigation is underway.

Incident Details

The father was operating a motorboat on the canal, towing his son on waterskis behind him, when they passed a jetty at Zavelstraat in Dilsen. Both heard several loud bangs, and a cyclist along the canal began waving to alert them. The father then saw a man on a fishing boat moored at the jetty hide a gun inside his vessel.

Father and son continued to the watersports center at Litzberg in Lanklaar, where they notified Police Zone Maasland. The shipping police (scheepvaartpolitie) arrived at the scene, conducted initial investigations, confiscated the air rifle, and interviewed those involved. A formal report has been prepared and forwarded to the public prosecutor’s office.

According to Belga/Het Belang van Limburg via MSN, Bruno Coppin, spokesperson for the Limburg public prosecutor’s office, confirmed the incident: “We can confirm that an incident with an air weapon has occurred. The investigation into the circumstances of the incident is ongoing and is in the hands of the shipping police.”

Context and Tensions on the Water

The waterskiers were operating within the permitted hours and location — waterskiing is only allowed between 1 PM and 7 PM on a 3-kilometer designated stretch of the canal. Kenny Donne of the Maaslandse Watersportvereniging (Maasland Watersports Club) expressed shock at the incident.

“These things don’t belong at the waterfront,” Donne told VRT NWS. He noted that tensions have existed between waterskiers and boat owners in the area, largely stemming from the waves created by waterskiing boats, which cause disturbance to moored vessels.

Donne added that regular fishermen in the area are not typically the source of problems. “With the fishermen who have been coming here for years, we never have problems. It’s the outsiders who sometimes cause trouble,” he said, noting that some boat owners moor at the jetty for longer than the permitted 24 hours, which is itself a violation.

Legal Considerations

In Belgium, the purchase and possession of a long air rifle (luchtkarabijn) is unrestricted, according to Wikipedia. However, use on public domain — such as the Zuid-Willemsvaart canal, which is a public waterway — requires a legal reason and prior notification to local police. Neither of these conditions appears to have been met in this case.

For short air weapons with kinetic energy exceeding 7.5 joules, a license is required. The specific type of air rifle involved in this incident has not been disclosed by authorities.

Investigation and Next Steps

The motive for the attack remains unclear. The suspect has been identified but not publicly named. The shipping police are leading the investigation under the authority of the Limburg public prosecutor’s office. Charges could potentially include possession of a weapon on public domain without legal reason and assault with a weapon.

As the investigation continues, the watersports community in Dilsen-Stokkem remains on edge. The incident has raised questions about whether increased police patrols or new regulations on the Zuid-Willemsvaart canal may be needed to prevent future confrontations between recreational users of the waterway.

For now, authorities have confirmed that no injuries were sustained, and the confiscated air rifle is being examined as part of the ongoing inquiry.