The Zone de secours du Brabant wallon covers the whole province of Walloon Brabant, south of Brussels: 27 municipalities, 415,429 residents and about 1,090 km². Its 432 operational staff, 273 professional and 159 volunteer, work from five posts in Wavre, Braine-l'Alleud, Nivelles, Tubize and Jodoigne, all staffed around the clock. In 2025 the zone carried out 30,158 missions: 22,610 ambulance runs and 7,548 fire-service calls, including 1,458 fires. In an emergency, dial 112.
Zone headquarters (non-emergency)
+32 10 39 55 00- zonedesecours@incendiebw.be
- Chaussée des Collines 52 bte 5, 1300 Wavre, Belgium
- brabant-wallon.secourspompiers.be
- Fire-prevention phone desk: Mon–Fri 9 a.m.–12 p.m.; office hours: Not published
Who Provides Fire Protection in Walloon Brabant
Since 2015, Belgian fire services are organized in rescue zones (zones de secours) run by their member municipalities. The Walloon Brabant zone, created on April 1, 2015, matches the province and covers 27 municipalities:
- West and center: Braine-l'Alleud, Braine-le-Château, Court-Saint-Etienne, Genappe, Ittre, La Hulpe, Lasne, Mont-Saint-Guibert, Nivelles, Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve, Rebecq, Rixensart, Tubize, Villers-la-Ville, Waterloo and Wavre
- East: Beauvechain, Chastre, Chaumont-Gistoux, Grez-Doiceau, Hélécine, Incourt, Jodoigne, Orp-Jauche, Perwez, Ramillies and Walhain
Each post has four professional (pompiers professionnels) and four volunteer (pompiers volontaires) teams, one per company, working 24-hour shifts with on-site and on-call crews around the clock. A fifth company of ambulance staff reinforces the daytime. The zone runs its own dispatch, with about 65–70 trained dispatchers, and 21 office staff.
Fire Posts in Walloon Brabant
| Post | Address | Staff (pro / vol) | Ambulance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poste de Tubize | Rue Ferrer 91, 1480 Tubize | 51 / 27 | Yes |
| Poste de Braine-l'Alleud | Chaussée de Mont-Saint-Jean 120, 1420 Braine-l'Alleud | 64 / 25 | Yes |
| Poste de Nivelles | Chaussée de Charleroi 46, 1400 Nivelles | 51 / 33 | Yes |
| Poste de Wavre | Chaussée de Namur 115, 1300 Wavre | 65 / 33 | Yes |
| Poste de Jodoigne | Rue des Trois Fontaines 12, 1370 Jodoigne | 24 / 31 | No |
Posts publish no direct phone numbers; use the zone number above. A new Tubize post was under construction, with the move planned for mid-2026. Dial 112 for emergencies.
Estimated Response Time
Five posts share about 1,090 km², so the average distance to the nearest post is roughly 8.3 km (5.2 mi), long by Belgian standards. With 385 residents per km² and mixed professional and volunteer crews on duty in the stations, the zone fits the suburban/combination column of our baseline table. The zone's own coverage map shows under 12 minutes around the posts and 16 to over 20 minutes at the eastern and southern edges.
| Radius | Combination posts |
|---|---|
| ≤ 2.4 km | 5–8 min |
| 2.4–4.8 km | 7–10 min |
| 4.8–9.7 km | 9–13 min |
| > 9.7 km | 13+ min |
Typical expectation: about 9–13 minutes for most addresses; less in Wavre, Braine-l'Alleud, Nivelles and Tubize, and often 16+ minutes in villages far from a post. In the east, private ambulances and neighboring zones (Eghezée, Hannut, Gembloux, Landen, Tienen) often bring the fastest medical help.
Estimated Fire Control Time
| Fire size | Example | Indicative time |
|---|---|---|
| Small | Grass patch, dumpster, small vehicle | 5–20 min |
| Medium | Room-and-contents, car fully involved | 15–45 min |
| Large | Whole house, commercial unit | 45–120 min |
| Major | Multi-alarm, industrial, large woodland fire | 2–12+ hours |
The zone lists two Seveso companies, several pharmaceutical plants and hospitals, the university town of Louvain-la-Neuve, Beauvechain air base, Ittre prison, the high-speed rail line, the E411, E40, E19 and A8 motorways, and pipelines carrying high-pressure gas, ethylene and NATO fuel. Fires rose 23% in 2025, and the Dyle, Gette and Senne basins flood regularly. Large incidents draw on the zone's own specialist teams and on neighboring zones.
Apparatus & Equipment
The fleet numbered 105 vehicles in 2025, including 13 ambulances; 26% had passed their planned service life. Fire engines (autopompes), aerial ladders, tankers, command and container vehicles make up the rest; counts per type are not published. Each post also has a large-animal rescue kit and three chainsaw kits, and Wavre and Braine-l'Alleud have remotely piloted drones. Specialist teams (December 31, 2024):
- Rope rescue (GRIMP), members
- 16
- Hazmat/CBRN (NrBC), members
- 22
- Divers (plongeurs), members
- 10
A search-and-rescue team for collapsed buildings is being set up.
- Emergency ambulance
- Hazmat (NrBC)
- Dive rescue
- Rope rescue (GRIMP)
- Technical rescue
- Drones
Walloon Brabant in Numbers (2025)
- 30,158 missions, about 83 a day; 76% were ambulance runs (22,610)
- 1,458 fires, 270 hazardous-materials calls, 2,940 technical-rescue calls and 234 wasp or hornet nests
- 2,422 fire-prevention missions (inspections and opinions)
- About two-thirds of all calls come between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
Services & Community Programs
- Fire-prevention advice (prévention incendie): phone desk Monday–Friday, 9 a.m.–12 p.m., and free home-safety advice for residents.
- Recruitment of professional and volunteer firefighters and ambulance staff: job offers on the zone website.
Ratings & Accreditation
Belgium has no public fire-protection rating comparable to the US ISO classification. Not applicable.
Outdoor burning: Burning waste in the open air is banned in Wallonia. Dry natural plant waste is the main exception: under the Rural Code (art. 89), the fire must be at least 100 m from homes, hedges, orchards, fields and other combustible material, and at least 25 m from woods and forests. Wet plant waste and fresh grass clippings may not be burned. Municipalities can be stricter, and authorities can ban fires in drought or strong wind. Compost, or use a recyparc, and check your municipality's police rules first.
Neighboring Rescue Zones
- Brandweerzone Vlaams-Brabant West, Flemish Brabant (northwest: Halle, Sint-Genesius-Rode)
- Hulpverleningszone Oost Vlaams-Brabant, Flemish Brabant (north and east: Overijse, Huldenberg, Hoegaarden, Landen)
- Zone de secours Hesbaye, Liège (east: Lincent, Hannut)
- Zone de secours NAGE, Namur (southeast: Eghezée, Gembloux)
- Zone de secours Val de Sambre, Namur (south: Sombreffe)
- Zone de secours Hainaut-Est, Hainaut (south: Les Bons Villers, Pont-à-Celles)
- Zone de secours Hainaut-Centre, Hainaut (west: Seneffe, Braine-le-Comte, Enghien)
FAQ
What is the non-emergency number for the fire service in Wavre or Walloon Brabant?
The zone's general number is +32 10 39 55 00 (headquarters, Chaussée des Collines 52, Wavre). For any fire or medical emergency, dial 112.
How many fire stations does Walloon Brabant have?
Five: Wavre, Braine-l'Alleud, Nivelles, Tubize and Jodoigne. All five fight fires; all except Jodoigne also run ambulances.
Are Walloon Brabant's firefighters volunteers?
Both: on January 1, 2025, the zone had 273 professional and 159 volunteer operational staff, working together in every post.
How fast do firefighters arrive in Walloon Brabant?
No average is published. The zone's map shows under 12 minutes near the posts and 16 to over 20 minutes at the edges; we estimate about 9–13 minutes for most addresses.
Can I burn garden waste in Walloon Brabant?
Only dry plant waste, at least 100 m from homes and 25 m from woods, unless your municipality or a drought ban forbids it. Wet waste and grass clippings may never be burned.
Last verified:
- FPS Home Affairs — Rescue zone contacts (April 17, 2026) (members, HQ, phone)
- ZSBW — Annual report 2025 (population, area, posts, staff, fleet, missions, risks, teams, coverage map)
- ZSBW — Annual report 2025 page
- ZSBW — Fire stations (post addresses)
- ZSBW — Specialist teams
- RTBF — Garden fires: rules and distances (2026) (Walloon burning rules)