A massive fire engulfed and completely destroyed the main stage at the Tomorrowland festival with firefighters battling to stop the blaze from spreading to nearby woodland.
The fire tore through the main stage at the festival site in Boom, Belgium, where hundreds of thousands of revellers were expected to descend for the opening weekend. There are no festivalgoers at the site at the moment, although it is estimated some 1,000 employees were there at the time of the fire.No one was injured in the fire with nearby residents being asked to close their windows and doors as smoke filled the sky, despite being told it was not toxic. Firefighters are battling to contain the blaze amid fears it could spread to nearby woodland.
The fire tore through the main stage on Wednesday ( Image: x)
In a statement shared online, festival organisers said: “Due to a serious incident and fire on the Tomorrowland Mainstage, our beloved Mainstage has been severely damaged.
“We can confirm that no one was injured during the incident. We can announce that, DreamVille (campsite) will open tomorrow (Thursday, July 17) as planned and will be ready for all DreamVille visitors.
“All Global Journey activities in Brussels and Antwerp will take place as planned. We are focused on finding solutions for the festival weekend (Friday – Saturday – Sunday). More updates and detailed information will be communicated as soon as possible.”
Festival spokesperson Debby Wilmsen previously told De Telegraaf: “Our priority now is the safety of our visitors and those in the surrounding area.” The mayor of Boom, Jeroen Baert has reportedly cancelled his holiday in Germany and will be returning to handle the fall out from the fire.
The festival was due to start on Friday with many revellers already making their way to Belgium ahead of the camp site opening tomorrow. Hundreds of thousands of revellers make their way to the festival each year over one weekend where they can listen to electronic sets.
Tomorrowland’s main stage is considered a centre piece of the festival and typically reflects its yearly theme. This year, the theme was “The World of Orbyz.”
Tomorrowland festival main stage engulfed in flames as blaze breaks out
Video shared online shows the fire ripping through the main stage with thick plumes of smoke being sent up into the air. Fireworks could also be heard popping off, although it is unclear if they are directly linked to the cause of the fire.
Another clip showed the fire appeared to have started on the right side of the stage. Shocked employees could be seen moving away from the main stage towards a grassy hill as the blaze continued to tear through the structure.
Further videos shared online revealed the blaze had completely destroyed the main stage, leaving the frame of the structure behind. Photos also showed emergency services had arrived at the site with firefighters bravely battling the inferno.
The fire is a disaster with attendees, many of which are travelling by plane, set to arrive as camping opens tomorrow. The main stage makes up a huge part of the festival area and would significantly impact the number of attendees should the decision be made to shut it down but keep the weekend slot open.
