Noah and the Whale Singer Recalls 'Mad' Weather Before Belgian Stage Collapse

Noah and the Whale had already been offstage for a few hours when a sudden burst of extreme weather hit Belgium's Pukkelpop festival yesterday, felling trees that led to the collapse of the stage, killing five fans and injuring at least 140 others. Even from the safety of the band's bus, however, singer Charlie Fink could tell something was wrong.

"The weather got mad," Fink told the British music magazine NME. "I've never seen anything like it, it was almost apocalyptic. It was pitch black like night but was only 5 o'clock."

In the aftermath of the disaster, Fink told the magazine, an eerie calm swept over the grounds.

"The freakiest part was that it went dead silent and for a festival that isn't something that usually happens," he said. "Then people were just running away. A tree had fallen in the backstage area and a branch had gone straight through one of the tents, it was madness."

The remainder of the festival - which was to feature the Foo Fighters, Offspring and Eminem - was subsequently cancelled. The accident took place as Smith Westerns were beginning their set, but the Chicago glam-grunge upstarts escaped without injury.

Watch the BBC's Report on the Pukkelpop Disaster

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