Fire destroys main stage of Tomorrowland festival days before opening
Video footage shared on social media shows flames tearing across the stage as plumes of thick black smoke rise into the air, while fireworks can also be seen and heard going off in the distance.
It is unclear how the fire started at the festival site, in the town of Boom, north of Brussels, where an estimated 200,000 people were due to gather this weekend.
No festival-goers were on site at the time of the fire, but about 1,000 staff members were present and have now been evacuated, Belgian broadcaster VRT reported.
'Due to a serious incident and fire on the Tomorrowland Mainstage, our beloved Mainstage has been severely damaged,' festival organisers said in a statement on Wednesday, confirming that no one was injured.
The festival, whose big names on this weekend's line-up include David Guetta, Swedish House Mafia, Charlotte de Witte and Amelie Lens, is expected to go ahead without the main stage, although it is unclear how acts will be rescheduled.
Tomorrowland spokesperson Debby Wilmsen said a lot of workers were devastated to see the main stage destroyed, given that it took years to build, 'with so much love and passion.'
'We're going to make it a great festival. It will be without a main stage. But hopefully, we can do something else, but I can't say much about that yet,' she added.
Organisers said they "spent the night working on possible solutions for the mainstage area" and that its "Dreamville" campsite welcomed festivalgoers on Thursday morning.
Morgan Hermans, who lives near the festival site, told CNN that she initially heard fireworks going off, which prompted her to look outside.
'There was just a big cloud of fireworks and smoke very near us, so that was a bit scary,' she said.'It's one of the biggest events in the entire year. Our town is very small so to welcome people (from) around the entire world, it's crazy and it's so much fun.
"It's a big deal so everyone in Boom was a bit terrified for a few seconds."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Glasgow Times
13 hours ago
- Glasgow Times
'Can she play up front?' Becky Hill poses with Celtic top
The Remember singer was spotted holding the Hoops kit in Como on Friday night, while the Italian club hosted a gala which was attended by some famous faces. The East End club posted a video of Becky Hill clutching a jersey and added her biggest hit, featuring DJ David Guetta, as background music. Becky admired the green and white strip before lifting it up to pose with it, and fans were quick to comment on the superstar's newfound affiliation with the club. Becky Hill performing at TRNSMT in Glasgow (Image: Newsquest/Colin Mearns) READ MORE: 'Imagine being on after this': bar erupts as man nails 'amazing' karaoke song READ MORE: Rangers fan escorted from stadium after being caught with a knife A few fans joked: "Can she play right wing?" Another gushed: "I knew I loved her for something!" However, while there were some lighthearted comments, many fans were quick to criticise the club for a lack of signings so far in the transfer window. One made a dig: "Doing absolutely anything but singing players." Another had a go: "Honest to God, I've not known a preseason like full of stuff wanting to sell us ...but not wanting to buy decent players for the fans ....what's going on Celtic FC." READ MORE: Rodgers finds room for improvement in Celtic squad as pre-season ends And it would appear that [[Celtic]] manager Brendan Rodgers believes his squad needs further reinforcement as they prepare to kick off their William Hill Premiership title defence at home to St Mirren next weekend. We reported how The Hoops boss declared that the group he currently has at his disposal is 'in a really good place' after rounding off their pre-season campaign with a penalty shootout win over Al Ahli in the Como Cup following a 1-1 draw at Stadio Sinigaglia on Saturday night.
Metro
a day ago
- Metro
Major music festival with A-list headliners cancelled at the last minute
Connecticut's popular Soundside Music Festival has abruptly been cancelled, two months before its headliners were set to take the stage. The two-day event – which was set to return to Seaside Park in Bridgeport, Connecticut on September 27 and 28 – has been axed due to 'circumstances beyond our control', organisers have said. The headliners slated for the event were The Killers, Weezer, Hozier and Vampire Weekend, with Japanese Breakfast, Remi Wolf, Alex Warren and The Last Dinner Party also included in the line-up. But now a brief message on the festival's website has announced: 'Due to circumstances beyond our control, Soundside Music Festival has been cancelled. 'Tickets will be refunded to the original method of payment in as little as 30 days depending on your bank's processing time.' The festival organisers have not provided any further specifics on why the event will not be going ahead. The official Soundside Music Festival social media accounts were taken down following the announcement, including its Instagram and Facebook pages, which had over 52,000 combined followers. General admission for a single-day ticket to the festival started at $170 (£127), according to the Soundside Music Festival's now-deleted ticket page. This comes after the Foo Fighters cancelled their performance at the festival last year, following on from lead singer Dave Grohl's admission that he cheated on his wife and fathered a child with another person. The gig was slated for September 29, 2024, but was pulled without an explanation in an Instagram post which had its comments promptly switched off. The announcement came after the rock band had been shaken by controversy just weeks earlier, as Dave, 56, shared a statement to social media in which he admitted he was the father to a new baby daughter born outside his marriage. More Trending To the shock of fans, the frontman – who has been married to Jordyn Blum since 2003 – shared on Instagram: 'I plan to be a loving and supportive parent to her. 'I love my wife and my children, and I am doing everything I can to regain their trust and earn their forgiveness. 'We're grateful for your consideration toward all the children involved, as we move forward together.' Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: I got to see Ozzy Osbourne's last ever gig thanks to Metro – it was the best day of my life MORE: Tomorrowland hit by second tragedy after woman dies at fire struck festival MORE: Berghaus drops iconic festival collection – including Liam Gallagher's legendary '97 jacket re-release
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Wildest private jet confessions from gold coffins to nude passengers and rude wannabes
Flying round the world on a private jet definitely seems like the height of glamour - but for some attendants working on these planes, it's definitely been a wild ride Squashed on the middle seat in economy, with a ticket that you had to save up to buy for a long-haul flight, you likely have found yourself dreaming of chartering your own private jet. With celebs posting snaps from their own decidedly more comfortable journeys on private planes on social media, we have a glimpse into how the other half live - and it definitely seems more pleasant than gently trying to wake up the person snoring next to you when you're desperate to get to the loo. There's only so much in-flight entertainment can do to alleviate the general discomfort of being an economy passenger - but it might help to know that some people flying regularly on private jets are definitely not always having a great time: the flight attendants. 'I'm a pilot's wife and you must do this if you're asked to remove shoes at airport' Flight attendant claims airlines are too scared to address embarrassing issue Flight attendants who have gone public with their experiences working on private jets have admitted that they have had to put up with some truly bizarre, and often incredibly inappropriate behaviour, whilst they are catering to the rich and famous. One attendant, speaking anonymously to Mel Magazine, even revealed that she had one rich Russian passenger who would strip off mid-flight, forcing her to bring him food and drinks whilst he was totally in the nude. The attendant had a seriously clever way of dealing with this inappropriate behaviour, without directly confronting her rich and powerful passenger - which would have likely been hard to do, as guests paying such a premium for an exclusive flight all to themselves want their every whim attended to. "No one ever did more than one or two flights with this particular Russian man," the attendant explained. "He was that insufferable. "Miraculously, I managed a whole month. He'd get more and more drunk from the moment he stepped foot onboard the plane, and on occasions, all his clothes would be off. "I'd keep the temperature cold so he'd get uncomfortable, and maybe a little more modest. I developed subtle ways to defuse him over the course of the time I flew him; it became a game I think to make me blush. He often was the one blushing, though." Another seasoned private jet attendant, Kimberley Benton, told CNN that passengers on private planes expect a seriously personalised experience, and it goes far beyond passing out packets of peanuts. Having travelled the world extensively on a variety of private jets, Kimberley had learned to anticipate the needs of her guests, and had waited on everyone from pop stars to royals. She's even done her fair share of looking after pets and catered to every type of situation imaginable, from after parties - which she has to make sure "don't get out of control," to banquets. Mary Kalymnou, who has 13 years of experience, told CNN that she had even been on a flight that had "a deceased person on board – a coffin in the cargo, made out of gold and expensive wood". She also has travelled with guests who brought guns on board, excessive shopping sprees, and even, on one occasion, a parrot. Private jet crew speaking to the Mail Online revealed that they had endured some incredibly rude customers - who drop anything from £20,000 to £1 million on their flights - over the course of their career. The anonymous pilot explained, "Probably one of the strangest demands from a client was not to look at them in the eye or talk to them. It was very odd. Basically anything they needed, they would tell their personal assistant and then that person would let me know." Overall, they found it was "musicians" and "wannabees" who were the rudest passengers who climbed aboard their aircraft. "I would say the worst are usually musicians and producers that for whatever reason seem to have an air of entitlement, a lack of punctuality and a condescending attitude towards the crew," one explained. The other added, "The worst are the ones who have never been on a private jet and are trying to impress their friends or social media followers... I feel like they can sometimes be obnoxious."
