This January 1st, 2026, we commemorate the 50th anniversary of the tragic fire at the "6-9," a café-dancing located in La Louvière, established within a former commercial building.
This disaster resulted in the deaths of 15 people; 40 other occupants were seriously injured and burned, and the building was completely destroyed.
At 4:00 AM, ninety young people were in the café-dancing. Following a power outage, the establishment was plunged into darkness: some occupants lit lighters and matches to see. One of them ignited a garland; the fire remained small at first, but no one intervened to extinguish it… and tragedy struck.
The fire then spread suddenly, followed by a wave of panic. Some attempted to leave the premises through a corridor that was clearly too narrow, while others tried to enter to search for friends. Many, trapped, encountered blocked doors and bricked-up exits.
After the fire, eight bodies were found piled in the restroom, the remains of a couple were discovered near a condemned entrance door, and others were found scattered throughout the various rooms of the house.
This serves as a stark reminder that the year-end holiday season has seen other tragedies: the Switel Hotel fire in Antwerp on December 31, 1994 (15 dead and 164 injured), or the 't Hemeltje café fire in Volendam on January 1st, 2001 (14 dead and 200 serious injuries), to name but two…
Moments of celebration which, through oversight or negligence, but also through excess or lack of awareness, can quickly turn into catastrophes!
