A German lawyer narrowly escaped death twice in the space of an hour when he fled Brussels airport after the bombings and got out of a taxi at Maelbeek metro station just as another bomb went off there.
Marc Schreiner flew in to Brussels from Berlin on Tuesday morning for
a business trip when two blasts ripped through the airport building,
leaving at 11 people dead and dozens more injured. more.....
"I got out of the plane at 8 o'clock and when I got into the terminal building I saw hundreds of terrified people running around," he said. The blasts detonated by suicide bombers had just ripped through the airport building.
Mr Schreiner made his way through debris fallen from the terminal ceiling and past fire extinguishers spraying water and reached the front of the terminal.
"I got out of the plane at 8 o'clock and when I got into the terminal building I saw hundreds of terrified people running around," he said. The blasts detonated by suicide bombers had just ripped through the airport building.
Mr Schreiner made his way through debris fallen from the terminal ceiling and past fire extinguishers spraying water and reached the front of the terminal.
"It was panic. People were screaming and running in every direction. It was really shocking. The departures hall was devastated," the 41-year-old told BFMTV.
He managed to find a taxi and asked the driver to take him to the city centre.
"I began to get calls from friends and colleagues telling me to be careful. But I told them that I was safe," he said.
But just as he got out of the taxi in front of Maelbeek metro station, another bomb exploded there.
That blast, around 500 metres from the buildings of the European Parliament, killed 20 and wounded dozens.
"There was a blast, this incredibly loud detonation," he told German media.
Mr Schreiner saw panicked passengers stumbling out of the station and immediately ran to help them.
"I switched on the light in my smartphone and went downstairs and called to the people 'come to the light, I'll help you, here is the exit,'" he toldGermany's DW television.
He said that the further he went down into the dark station, the worse the blood-stained people's injuries were.
"There was a woman who was still responsive. I couldn't do any more than wish her courage," he said.
He was still a floor above the station's platforms when he was overcome by the acrid smoke and had to turn around and head back to the street.
He managed to find a taxi and asked the driver to take him to the city centre.
"I began to get calls from friends and colleagues telling me to be careful. But I told them that I was safe," he said.
But just as he got out of the taxi in front of Maelbeek metro station, another bomb exploded there.
That blast, around 500 metres from the buildings of the European Parliament, killed 20 and wounded dozens.
"There was a blast, this incredibly loud detonation," he told German media.
Mr Schreiner saw panicked passengers stumbling out of the station and immediately ran to help them.
"I switched on the light in my smartphone and went downstairs and called to the people 'come to the light, I'll help you, here is the exit,'" he toldGermany's DW television.
He said that the further he went down into the dark station, the worse the blood-stained people's injuries were.
"There was a woman who was still responsive. I couldn't do any more than wish her courage," he said.
He was still a floor above the station's platforms when he was overcome by the acrid smoke and had to turn around and head back to the street.
By Tuesday evening, the lawyer
was back home with his family in Berlin. A friend had driven him from
Brussels to Dusseldorf and from there he caught a plane back to the
German capital.
"This was such an extraordinary day. I flew to Brussels, experienced two bomb attacks, and at the second one I was the first to see these horrific pictures and these burnt and bloody passengers coming out of the smoke," said Mr Schreiner, who miraculously suffered no injuries in either of the two attacks.
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) claimed responsibility for the Brussels attacks, which came four days after the arrest in the Belgian capital of Salah Abdeslam, who was wanted for his role in November’s Paris terror attacks.
"This was such an extraordinary day. I flew to Brussels, experienced two bomb attacks, and at the second one I was the first to see these horrific pictures and these burnt and bloody passengers coming out of the smoke," said Mr Schreiner, who miraculously suffered no injuries in either of the two attacks.
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) claimed responsibility for the Brussels attacks, which came four days after the arrest in the Belgian capital of Salah Abdeslam, who was wanted for his role in November’s Paris terror attacks.
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