Pukkelpop 2011

Giruilla

What are foreigners doing who had planned on staying for the weekend? Are there places set up?

NothingMan

My mates have headed to Amsterdam for the weekend.

Fluorescence

We headed back to Brussels since we were staying there a few days either side of the festival anyway. Our parents rang ahead to book us back into the hostel our cases were stored in and we got in around 00:30 after catching the last train from Hasselt to Brussels. It was a close thing too - we were almost sleeping in the train station for the night.

seachto7

Jelle1880 wrote: »

More pictures, click 'Volgende' to scroll through them:

http://www.hln.be/hln/nl/8000/planet-watch/photoalbum/detail/1306615/1009880/0/Het-Pukkelpop-drama-in-86-foto-s.dhtml

Just look at those trees, can't imagine what it must have been like.

someone with an Irish flag in photo 58.........

Penfailed

RIP those people

Giruilla

Hope everyone gets home ok

threein99

The videos of it are unbeliveable, the video where Skunk Anansie have to go off stage just as it starts it like something out of the The Day After Tommorow

honru

I know feck all about weather, but can storms like this not be preempted? I watched a news report which included a forecast and it almost looked like two patches of storms combined together just as it passed over Hasselt...

It looks one of those extremely tall trees fell from those two rows of trees in front of the main stage. :eek: And yea, that video of Skunk Anansie on the Main Stage looks like the apocalypse or something.

Professey Chin

Apparently they were known and additional supports & inspections had been carried out and cleared. Doubt they expected that hit

Lia_lia

Giruilla wrote: »

What are foreigners doing who had planned on staying for the weekend? Are there places set up?

Luckily my Dad lives in France so I got a train here.

We were so lucky come to think of it...it was ridiculous. The weather had been fab all day then..boom!

I was sitting on this thing, then it started moving so we all ran off it. Turned around and it had completely torn apart!




Those hailstones were INSANE! People had holes in their backs from them...

flas

crazy really, id say that was very scary... I remember 2 years ago when a few of us were at benicassim when that storm hit, thunder, lightening, stages being blown around the place, but not totally over thank God and a fire sweeping through the fields beside the campsite, it was scary as hell, cant imagine what the hail stones were like!

Jelle1880

f®eak s©enery wrote: »

I know feck all about weather, but can storms like this not be preempted? I watched a news report which included a forecast and it almost looked like two patches of storms combined together just as it passed over Hasselt...

It looks one of those extremely tall trees fell from those two rows of trees in front of the main stage. :eek: And yea, that video of Skunk Anansie on the Main Stage looks like the apocalypse or something.

They knew a storm could come, but nobody could know it would be anything remotely like this.

The death toll has been brought back to 4 apparently, a man who ended up in hospital prior to the storm was mistakenly counted with the Pukkelpop-casualties.

ShortskirtCiara

I have never been so happy to finally be back at home.

We couldn't get over the heat on Thursday that we made a canopy using a spare tent sheet by tieing it to the 3 tents that we had, little did we know that by doing this would cause havoc when the storm actually hit.

I'm still in shock as to how quick it all happened, the rumbles of thunder and lightening came at such a pace and then the rain, wind and massive hailstones. Never experienced anything like it in my life and never have I feared for my life ever like this before.

I am actually so thankful that we arrived later on the Wednesday as we were knowhere near trees or watch towers etc that could have potentially fallen on us and even more so that we went into Hasselt when we did that day to stock up on supplies as it delayed us getting ready & starting to drink that we actually decided not to go into the festival grounds to see The Naked and Famous at half 5. God only knows what the outcome could have been if we did.

One thing I have to say is the way in which the tragedy was dealt with. It was so well organised, trains from hasselt-kiewet station bringing people straight to brussels and people from local houses helping everyone by giving food and shelter etc. One thing we were not informed about was the fact that there was accommodation made available for the remainder of the festival as we went into Brussels and paid for accommodation. To be honest, I don't mind as I was just glad to be safe.

Such a terrible disaster that will never be forgotten for Pukkelpopers. My prayers are with the friends and families of those that died and also with those struggling with their lives. RIP

scudzilla

Wow, just seen these vid's for the first time

Weak, looks ok, weather doesn't look too bad

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGolUkJYC0E

A few songs later

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vbe8HJqkKI

ShortskirtCiara

These two videos really capture the torture that we all went through while there...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSF6g-LtpUU&feature=youtube_gdata_player

and this one was filmed at the beer tent at the campsite, literally our tent was just to right of this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIGiekIW418&feature=youtube_gdata_player

languagenerd

Still in Brussels (coming back tomorrow) and there's a thunderstorm here at the moment... It makes me so uneasy now!!

Looking at all the pictures that've emerged since - we were so lucky! 100m either direction and we'd have been hit... I've been reading the French papers here, they say 36 LITRES OF RAIN PER METRE SQUARED fell during those 20 minutes! :eek:

Professey Chin

ShortskirtCiara wrote: »

and this one was filmed at the beer tent at the campsite, literally our tent was just to right of this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIGiekIW418&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Holy sh!t! :eek:
You can see the lighting pylon go down! (1:56 on the right hand side)

ShortskirtCiara

languagenerd wrote: »

Still in Brussels (coming back tomorrow) and there's a thunderstorm here at the moment... It makes me so uneasy now

I really hope it wasn't as bad as the thunder storm we had on the thursday or the 2nd one at 2am that night. Never been so scared before in my life. The two worst things I hate, thunder & lightning and then wasps (which were EVERYWHERE)...So glad to be at home!

Have a safe trip home

Pigwidgeon

It was pretty bad last night/this morning. Our flight was meant to be leaving at 10:15, but because of the weather it got diverted to Dusseldorf. It's now 11.40 and they think we'll be leaving at about 1. Fùcking storms. I can't wait to get home at this stage.

ShortskirtCiara

Pigwidgeon wrote: »

It was pretty bad last night/this morning.

Was it as bad as Thursdays storm? This is crazy stuff. Belguim apparently never gets storms, they get thunder & lightning alright but never this bad. F**king mother nature is screwing us over!

honru

To those who went, do you agree with the organisers' decision to cancel the entire festival after the storm?

THEZAPPA

That was so scary, so so happy to be home and safe!

We were suppose to be at the back of the boiler room at the time but luckily I was hungry and we headed back to the tents after seeing the naked and famous. One of our friends were in the boiler room but luckily they weren't hurt.

We were told before we left the camping that night by people working for pukkelpop that we should stay in the camping and that the festival was going to keep going (even though another storm was on the way) and that we should buy a mattress for our tents to keep them down or go buy more tents. Had to find out by our Belgium neighbours that we should leave.

Didn't know about the free accommodation either but we found a nice place in Brussels to stay so don't mind.

I think it was right for them to cancel the entire thing, sure the stages were gone so bands couldn't have played. Also it was out of respect for the people who had died or been seriously injured.

Hope all the boardsie's are home safe or have a safe trip home!!

ShortskirtCiara

f®eak s©enery wrote: »

To those who went, do you agree with the organisers' decision to cancel the entire festival after the storm?

I do agree with the decision. Even if it continued, which it couldn't anyways cos the stages collapsed etc, knowone would really be able to enjoy it 100% as 5 people died, just wouldn't be right. Hopefully we will be compensated in some shape or form, even free tickets for next years pukkelpop for those who want to go next year, that would be awesome!

Professey Chin

If we got a discount on tickets for next year id be delighted I have to say

I agree with it being cancelled completely. Would have been impossible to continue after all that

Fluorescence

It'd be damn nice to get a partial refund for those tickets, but I will totally understand if they can't. I do hope they don't discontinue the festival in years to come. It's still one of the best organised festivals in Europe.

NothingMan

I understand that you're all being sympathetic to Pukkelpop and saying you'd be happy with discounts and partial refunds but an event like this should be fully insured and I personally would expect a full or almost full refund for tickets and vouchers bought.

Fluorescence

NothingMan wrote: »

I understand that you're all being sympathetic to Pukkelpop and saying you'd be happy with discounts and partial refunds but an event like this should be fully insured and I personally would expect a full or almost full refund for tickets and vouchers bought.

Any insurance I've ever encountered has had some get out clause about "Acts of God". They're probably not covered for freak storms that come out of nowhere.

NothingMan

fluorescence wrote: »

Any insurance I've ever encountered has had some get out clause about "Acts of God". They're probably not covered for freak storms that come out of nowhere.

I'm an atheist :pac:

ShortskirtCiara

Well apparently they were meant to make an announcement yesterday about whether or not they were going to refund the money for the tickets and vouchers but I haven't seen anything on google or the official pukkelpop website.

Also, we paid for accommodation in Brussels as we didn't realise there was free accommodation for us that was organised by Pukkelpop, wonder would be compensated for that too?

I know it was an 'Act of God' but surely the Insurance covers it. Insurance is there incase these type of things happen

Professey Chin

But Insurance companies go though everything and get out of every cent payment they can. That always makes these things unpredictable