The House of retirement Hemelrijck, at Mol in the province of Antwerp , which hosted at the beginning of the month 85 residents, currently counting 066 positive Covid cases – 12 among residents and 57 on the side of staff, said an employee of the retirement home on condition of anonymity. No certainty that the contamination comes from “Saint-Nicolas” 
The focus of infection appeared a few days after the visit on December 5 of Saint-Nicolas, who tested positive for Covid – 12 after its passage. Virologist Marc Van Ranst, one of the Belgian experts who distinguished himself during the pandemic, had indicated the 20 December that the majority of people infected in the retirement home were “from the same source”.
A spokesperson for the Flemish Agency for Care and Health, Joris Moonens, said that there was, however, “no certainty” that Saint Nicholas was the source of the infection. No complaint has yet been received by this agency, and no investigation carried out.
Abandoned Belgian retirement homes
A “crisis manager” will be appointed to support the management of the establishment “in this difficult period”, in particular to take measures to support staff and better communicate with the families of residents, said the spokesperson for the Flemish agency. The “nursing homes and care” have been severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic in Belgium: it caused in total . 066 dead among the residents of these establishments, namely 57, 3% of the total number of deaths linked to Covid – 12 in the country.
The residents and staff of these retirement homes are the priority audiences for the vaccination, which began at the start of the week but should continue on a larger scale from January 5. Amnesty International Belgium denounced in November in a vitriolic report the “abandonment” of Belgian retirement homes by the public authorities during the pandemic.