Brussels Corinthia Hotel Evacuated After Chlorine Leak
The Corinthia Grand Hotel Astoria in central Brussels was evacuated on Thursday morning after a chlorine gas emission from a container in a basement technical room, the Brussels fire brigade said. Three members of staff were taken to hospital for precautionary examinations, RTBF reported. No guests were reported injured.
The five-star property, located at rue Royale 101-103, is one of the Belgian capital’s most prestigious hotels and is billed as its only 5-star palace. The incident prompted a full evacuation of guests and staff while emergency services worked to contain the leak.
What Happened
The emission originated from a container in a technical room in the hotel’s basement, according to La Dernière Heure. The fire brigade’s HAZMAT team, specialised in interventions involving hazardous materials, was dispatched to the scene and a safety perimeter was established.
Measurements taken in the hotel’s guest rooms came back negative, confirming that the incident remained confined to the basement. “The incident therefore stayed limited to the basement,” said fire brigade spokesperson Walter Derieuw, as quoted by the Belgian news agency Belga.
Evacuated guests were looked after by the hotel. By late morning, the rescue operation was still ongoing, but no further gas was escaping from the container, the fire services said.
A Disruption Beyond the Hotel
The evacuation had an unexpected knock-on effect. It delayed Dutch lawyer Yehudi Moskowicz, who was staying at the hotel and was due that morning at the Kriva Rochem trial at the Justitia building in Haren. He defends Flor Bressers, who is prosecuted alongside some thirty other defendants in an international cocaine-trafficking case, 7sur7 reported.
Background
The Corinthia Grand Hotel Astoria was built for the 1910 Brussels World’s Fair at the request of King Leopold II and designed by architect Henri van Dievoet in a Louis XV/XVI eclectic style. Its facade, roof and part of its interior were listed as Brussels architectural heritage in September 2000. Over the 20th century it hosted figures including Emperor Hirohito, Churchill, Eisenhower and Salvador Dalí.
After operating under Sofitel/Accor, the hotel was acquired in 2016 by the Maltese Corinthia hotel group. A major restoration and expansion directed by architect Francis Metzger ran until 2023, and the property reopened fully as Corinthia Brussels, offering 126 rooms including 31 suites.
Analysis
Chlorine gas releases from utility rooms or from reactions involving chlorinated cleaning products are a recurring cause of hotel and spa evacuations. The HAZMAT deployment and the negative readings in guest rooms point to a contained, low-exposure incident rather than a wider public-safety threat.
Thursday’s event is nonetheless sensitive for a property that positions itself at the top of Brussels hospitality. The rapid containment, the absence of guest injuries and the hotel’s own handling of evacuated guests are likely to limit the operational and reputational fallout. The fact that the leak was detected and addressed during a weekday morning — with the hotel at least partially occupied — underscores how quickly such incidents can affect both guests and events elsewhere in the city.
What’s Next
Authorities have not indicated whether an investigation into the origin of the container will follow. The hotel has not issued a public statement on when the affected areas will fully return to normal operations. The three staff members taken to hospital were undergoing precautionary examinations, and further updates on their condition were not immediately available.
Sources: RTBF, La Dernière Heure (DH), 7sur7 — all citing Belga, the Belgian news agency.