Fire engulfs main stage of Belgium's Tomorrowland music festival ahead of Friday start
No one was injured in the incident. Images shared on local news sites and social media showed flames and plumes of black smoke engulfing the stage and spreading to nearby woodland.
The annual festival in the town of Boom, north of Brussels, which is scheduled to start Friday, draws tens of thousands of visitors from around Europe.
''Due to a serious incident and fire on the Tomorrowland Mainstage, our beloved Mainstage has been severely damaged,'' the organizers posted on the event's website. ''We can confirm that no one was injured during the incident.''
The statement said the focus is now on 'finding solutions' for the festival weekend. The cause of the fire was not given.
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Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
Woman who spent $16k on Tomorrowland festival brutally roasted as she sobs upon learning fire burned down stage
A woman who forked over $16,000 to attend the Tomorrowland festival was brutally roasted online after she broke down in tears over the news that a fire had burned down the main stage. Earlier this week, it was revealed that a huge blaze had engulfed the main performance area at one of Europe's largest music festivals days before it was set to begin. Dramatic footage showed the moment the stage exploded into a fireball, before a gigantic plume of smoke filled the air and emergency services stormed the area. Afterwards, a woman named Emily, from New York, who is set to jet off to Antwerp, Belgium, to attend the multi-day EDM concert, shared her heartbreak over the news. She sobbed as she confessed that she had spent $16,000 to go to the beloved festival. 'I leave on Monday and have been looking forward to this trip for 13 years and have $16,000 already spent and invested and now the main stage is burnt down,' she wrote in a text overlay as footage showed her crying and covering her face in devastation. Viewers were divided over her admission in the comment section, with some coming to her defense and others slamming her for spending that much on a music festival. '$16k I'm HOWLING,' wrote one user. 'Spending that amount of money is insane girl,' someone else quipped. But Emily fired back, 'Not when I work hard for it and spend it on something I've been waiting over a decade for. The price is what I spent for an entire 10 day trip overseas.' 'I have no idea what Tomorrowland is but all the people coming for you for spending money on a trip you've wanted to do your whole life can kick rocks,' a defender added. 'This isn't a spur of the moment weekend trip. I hope it all works out and you still have fun.' 'If you spent $16k for a concert you need to get your priorities figured out,' another person commented. 'Whoever spends $16k on a concert deserves to lose it. Absolute waste of money,' scathed a different user. In a previous video, Emily explained that she had been 'dreaming' of going to the festival since she was 12 years old. That's why when she and a pal decided to go this year, she said they wanted to go all out; so they booked an expensive package that took care of everything for them. She sobbed as she confessed that she had spent $16,000 to go to the beloved festival, and viewers were divided over her admission in the comment section 'There are cheaper ways to go about this but the way that we booked it, everything is booked for us. This price includes everything,' she explained. The package cpmes with a two-night stay at the Martin's Patershof in Mechelen in the days leading up to the festival, a stay at the festival's 'DreamVille' in an exclusive Cabana during the festival, a VIP ticket to the festival, transportation to and from the festival, access to a pre-party, and one night at the Cardo Hotel Brussels after the festival. It does not include flights. 'The first two days are completely planned by Tomorrowland but we do not get to find out what we're doing until we arrive,' Emily added. 'When we land they will give us our packet that tells us everything we're doing. All the activities are booked by Tomorrowland. 'From what I am reading online and videos I'm watching on YouTube, it includes excursions around Belgium - beer tastings, food tastings, fun experiences.' She explained that the total for that came to about $6,900 each. She paid another $4,200 on her and her friends' round-trip flights from New York to Brussels. About 1,000 staff members were working at the site at the time of the fire, although the festival has confirmed no one was injured. The cause of the blaze is unknown, but witnesses reported hearing fireworks going off as the fire started. In a statement given by the festival, the organizers said that their 'beloved Mainstage,' which they called Orbyz, had been left 'severely damaged' as a result of a 'serious incident.' The statement added: 'This wasn't just a stage. It was a living, breathing world. 'From the very first sketch on a blank page, to countless hours of conceptual design, artistic collaboration, engineering, crafting, building, every single piece of Orbyz carried part of our soul. 'But, we hold on to the magic Orbyz gave us. To the dreams it carried. To the team who gave their all.' Organizers of the popular festival said that they worked tirelessly through the night to reach a solution, with the event successfully going ahead the next day due to other parts of the festival remaining unaffected. The local fire department also declared the site safe. Incredibly, a replacement stage was constructed, reportedly using pieces of stage from Metallica's recent world tour. Some 100,000 participants are expected to attend the Tomorrowland festival across two weekends. Weekend one kicked off on Friday, and included performances from top DJs and electronic music stars like David Guetta, Martin Garrix, Lost Frequencies, Armin Van Buuren, and Charlotte de Witte. Weekend two will take place next week from Friday, July 25 to Sunday, July 27.
The Independent
3 days ago
- The Independent
Woman dies at Tomorrowland days after devastating fire on main stage
A Canadian woman has died at Tomorrowland festival just days after the festival opened despite a huge fire destroying the main stage. Authorities in Antwerp are investigating the 35-year-old's death after she became unwell at the festival grounds on Friday night. A statement said emergency services resuscitated the woman, but that she later died in hospital. The public prosecutor's office in Antwerp said in a statement: 'The prosecutor's office immediately launched an investigation. Initial findings indicate strong evidence of a drug-related death. An autopsy and a thorough toxicology examination will provide definitive answers.' It is the second tragedy that has struck the festival in recent days, after its main stage was destroyed in a fire earlier in the week. Images shared on local news sites and social media showed flames and plumes of black smoke engulfing the stage and spreading to nearby woodland on Wednesday. Fireworks seemingly ready for performances were also seen exploding into the air as nearby residents were urged to close all windows and doors until the fire was contained. No members of the public were present at the time of the blaze, but 1,000 employees were on site. Dozens of emergency teams were seen rushing through the festival grounds just after 6pm on the day of the blaze in an attempt to extinguish the flames and evacuate those inside the grounds. The cause of the fire has not yet been confirmed. Some of the world's most popular DJs are due to appear on the stage over the weekend, including Martin Garrix, David Guetta, Fisher, Swedish House Mafia and Steve Aoki. Organisers raced to build an alternative main stage, with the festival opening two hours later than planned on Friday. The Independent has contacted Tomorrowland for comment regarding the death of the woman. Festival spokesperson Debby Wilmsen told Brussels Morning: "She received first aid and was then transferred to the University Hospital of Antwerp. 'We were informed she passed away there. Our condolences go out to her family and friends. The Antwerp prosecutor's office is investigating the cause of death and will update further on this matter.'
Metro
3 days ago
- Metro
Woman, 35, dies at Tomorrowland festival after stage fire causes health concern
A Canadian woman has died at the electronic music festival Tomorrowland just days after a fire destroyed its main stage. The festival goer, 35, was among the tens of thousands of people in the crowd at the Belgian festival on opening night on Friday. The woman became unwell at the concert held in Boom, near Antwerp, and was taken to a hospital. She was later pronounced dead, a spokeswoman for the Antwerp prosecutor's office said. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Prosecutors said they were working to find out what caused the the 35-year-old's death. The tragedy follows a 'devastating' blaze which tore through the ice-themed mainstage. The stage was left in ashes but organisers have reassured the 400,000 ticket holders the event will still go ahead. The festival was headlined by Martin Garrix on Friday night, capping off performances by Artbat B2B Kölsch, ALOK and Axwell and others. More Trending David Guetta is due to perform at the festival this weekend, alongside other big names such as Swedish Mafia House, Lost Frequencies and Jax Jones. Some spent thousands to get to Tomorrowland have still been left feeling sour after the stage fire, which is believed to have started form a fireworks test. One reveller, Pedro, told Metro he is concerned for his health due to the destruction the fire left behind. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page.
