North West MEP and Chester resident Steven Woolfe was sitting in his Brussels flat just 50 metres from the Metro station where a bomb went off this morning (March 22), killing 20 people.

Mr Woolfe was on the phone to wife Fiona reassuring her that he was fine after two earlier bombs at Zaventem airport in which 14 people were killed when there was a third explosion on his doorstep.

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THE Ukip Euro MP, who lives with his wife and young daughter near Chester city centre , told BBC Radio 5 Live: “I was just talking to my wife and reassuring her and the next thing there was a very loud bang like a car exhaust going off but the building shook.

Soldiers and police officers patrol outside Maelbeek Metro station following today's (March 22) terrorist attack on Brussels, Belgium, in which at least 31 people are thought to have been killed. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

“I instantly thought ‘Oh no’”, continued Mr Woolfe, whose flat is opposite the Maelbeek Metro station. He then went downstairs to investigate along with a neighbour and opened the front door.

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“You could see cars were already beeping horns. There were lots of jams. To be fair, the police were there literally within five minutes, if that.”

After about 10 minutes the MEP decided to walk back to the European Parliament, which is just five minutes away, because he didn’t feel safe where he was. He described seeing ‘huge amounts’ of police descending on the area, some wearing body armour, along with ambulances. Soldiers were patrolling the parliament building carrying weapons.

People gather to leave tributes at the Place de la Bourse following today's attacks on Brussels, Belgium, in which at least 31 people are thought to have been murdered. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

Asked how he coped by interviewer Adrian Chiles, he responded: “I’ll be very honest. I was kind of nonchalant in a sense, a very British way of looking at it, because I’m from Manchester, the Arndale bomb, we had Warrington and I worked in London.”

But he conceded: “So after I got off the phone with my wife, it’s just very kind of ‘OK, just get on with life’, that’s what we are, we’re Brits. We just get on with it and have a cup of tea but when the bomb comes out and you realise how close it was, I have to admit, my hand was shaking.”

The hot air in the European parliament will contribute to an enjoyable 76F in the Belgian capital.
The European Parliament in Brussels

Mr Woolfe, by now sitting in his MEP’s office, was asked if he felt those who worked in the EU buildings were a target but he became emotional when he explained that it was ordinary people who were usually the victims.

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“I would probably say no. I think part of the tactics is they know it’s very difficult to get close to a building like this so they go for innocent people and that’s the disgrace and the disgusting aspect about terrorism. If they could get the leaders, clearly they would do so.

“But what they do is they ignore them and go for ordinary people, people who have to get up in the morning, have breakfast, feed their children, who they probably won’t see again. And that’s the disgrace of these people, that ordinary individuals got on a tube this morning and they won’t go home to their mums and dads.”

The attacks come just days after a key suspect in the Paris attacks, Salah Abdeslam, was captured in Brussels.