Boy critically injured by debris as winds batter Brussels

A young boy is in a critical condition in hospital after being knocked unconscious by falling debris in Evere as winds gusting up to 100kph brought dangerous conditions to large parts of Belgium.

Firefighters reported a surge in emergency callouts on Thursday for fallen trees, billboards and scaffolding. The boy in Evere was walking along Avenue Henry Dunant with his mother when a tile or brick fell from a building and struck his head.

A fallen tree on the Brussels Ring at Hoeilaart caused long delays on Thursday morning. In Schaerbeek, a woman had a lucky escape when a tree smashed through her car windscreen.

Winds should die down early on Friday morning. Brussels parks and woods will be reopened as soon as safety checks and cleaning of debris is completed.