A fire has destroyed the main stage at the Tomorrowland music festival, just hours before it was about to begin.
The stage at the festival near Antwerp in Belgium, was engulfed in flames, a day before thousands of electronic dance music fans were set to arrive at the event.
According to Belgian fire crews, the blaze started at around 6pm local time and quickly destroyed a large part of the festival's main stage.
Around 400,000 dance music fans were expected to attend the festival, which featured some of the world's biggest DJs including Eric Prydz, David Guetta and Armin Van Buuren.
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|Fire destroying part of the main stage at Tomorrowland
One employee who had been working on the site told local media the blaze was like "an apocalyptic scene".
They said: "We suddenly heard bangs and saw fire near the stage, a huge amount of fire.
"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."
Fire crews said houses in the neighbouring town of Boom had to be evacuated, as they confirmed there were no injuries and they were working to confirm the cause of the blaze.
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|Fireworks burst and smoke rises as a fire engulfs the main stage of Tomorrowland
A spokeswoman from the festival said: "We received some truly terrible news today. A fire broke out on the Tomorrowland site...and our main stage was essentially destroyed there, which is truly awful.
"That's a stage that took years to build, with so much love and passion. So I think a lot of people are devastated.
"We can confirm that no one was injured during the incident."
They also confirmed the festival would be going ahead with the campsites opening later today.
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|Smoke caused by a fire pictured at the festival site of the Tomorrowland electronic music festival
Prosecutors in Antwerp have opened an investigation, though they said the fire appeared to be accidental.
Tomorrowland has been running since 2005 and is regarded as one of the world's most famous dance music festivals.
The festival has become known for its expansive and elaborately themed stages, featuring some of the biggest names in electronic music.