Dutch railways: No trains to Brussels Central following explosion

No trains will be stopping at Brussels Central Station today following a small explosion there on Tuesday night, NS International said on its website. The explosion happened around 8:30 p.m. The Belgian authorities had control of the situation very quickly and no one bystanders were injured. The suspected perpetrator was gunned down by soldiers almost immediately after the explosion, ANP reports.

Belgian broadcaster VRT Nieuws reports that the suspect was carrying a heavy bomb that could have done a lot of damage. According to the broadcaster, the explosion was caused by the ignition of the explosive - the actual bomb did not go off. Some other media report that the man was carrying a bomb belt, but the Belgian authorities could not confirm this, according to ANP. The authorities consider this a terrorist attack.

The Belgian authorities were conducting trace evidence investigations at the station until around 5:30 a.m this morning. No trains will be stopping at the station at all for at least today. It is not yet clear when this measure will be lifted. "By order of the police, no trains will stop at Brussels Central until further notice. IC Brussels will otherwise travel according to schedule and stop in Brussels North and Brussels South", the NS website reads.