Tomorrowland In Flames: Iconic Main Stage Catches Fire Day Before Festival Kick-Off In Belgium
A massive fire engulfed the main stage of Belgium's iconic Tomorrowland music festival site on Wednesday, just 48 hours before the event was set to begin. The blaze destroyed the elaborate 'World of Orbyz"-themed structure, sending up thick plumes of smoke and forcing the evacuation of around 1,000 staff members from the site in Boom, north of Brussels.
Festival organisers confirmed that no one was injured in the incident. '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," the organisers said in a statement published on the festival website.
Video clips and images posted online showed the stage engulfed in flames, with fireworks exploding inside the blaze and smoke rising over the surrounding woodland. While the connection between the fireworks and the fire remains unclear, eyewitnesses told local media the blaze may have started during pyrotechnic tests on the right side of the stage. However, no official cause has been confirmed so far.
Belgium's public broadcaster VRT reported that the fire was not yet under control at the time of their update, and that the main stage had been almost completely destroyed. Photos showed only charred metal frames left where the stage once stood.
Firefighting Efforts And Emergency Response
More than 50 firefighters from Boom and neighbouring Antwerp were deployed to the scene, managing to prevent the fire from spreading to nearby woods. Authorities issued emergency warnings advising residents to keep windows and doors shut as a precaution. However, fire officials later confirmed that the smoke was not toxic.
The town's mayor, Jeroen Baert, cut short a vacation in Germany to return and manage the situation. Local police confirmed the fire in a post on X (formerly Twitter) and urged people to avoid the area and give way to emergency services.
No Casualties, But Massive Setback
No festival-goers were present at the site when the fire broke out, but around 1,000 staff members were safely evacuated, according to VRT. Tomorrowland spokesperson Debby Wilmsen said the crew was devastated: 'It took years to build, with so much love and passion."
Despite the destruction, she confirmed the festival will go on, albeit without its famous centrepiece. '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 said.
The DreamVille campsite, which houses thousands of attendees during the multi-day festival, will open as scheduled on Thursday. 'We're expecting 38,000 festival-goers at DreamVille, at our campsite. We're really looking forward to it," Wilmsen added.
A Blow For Boom
CNN: 'There was just a big cloud of fireworks and smoke very near us, so that was a bit scary."
'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."
Not The First Fire
This is the second major fire in Tomorrowland's history. In 2017, a blaze at its Barcelona satellite event led to the evacuation of 22,000 people, just hours before Steve Aoki was due to perform.
As of now, the cause of Wednesday's fire is under investigation, and authorities are assessing whether any part of the main stage infrastructure can be salvaged before the festival's official opening on Friday.
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