A 35-year-old woman has died at Tomorrowland Festival just days after the Belgian festival’s main stage was destroyed by a fire.
The Canadian woman became unwell at the festival grounds on Friday night (July 18) and despite emergency services managing to resuscitate her, she later passed away in hospital.
In a statement, the Antwerp public prosecutor’s office said: “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 comes just days after the festival was ravaged by a fire that destroyed its main stage. The blaze took place on Wednesday (July 16), before the 70,000 festivalgoers arrived on the site, but around 1000 employees were present at the time.
No injuries were reported as a result of the fire, and on Thursday, Tomorrowland announced that the festival would go ahead as planned. Organisers assembled an alternative main stage, which stands against the backdrop of the burnt-down stage, with a smaller DJ booth and a large screen behind it.
Those billed to play the 2025 event include David Guetta, Lost Frequencies, Swedish House Mafia and Charlotte De Witte, and there are 14 other stages outside of the main stage, although they are considerably smaller.
When the fire broke out at around 6pm local time (4pm UK time) on Wednesday, footage of the destruction was quickly shared across social media. One employee said that it felt “apocalyptic” to see the damage it was causing.
“We suddenly heard bangs and saw fire near the stage, a huge amount of fire,” they told Het Nieuwsblad. “We were just putting the finishing touches on it. One more day and it would be finished. Four weeks of work… gone in half an hour.”
Some residents in the area were evacuated, and firefighters worked to prevent the fire from reaching the surrounding homes or woodland.
It isn’t yet clear why the fire broke out, although some speculate it may be an issue with pyrotechnics, as fireworks were allegedly heard by some people in the area.
