Paul van Dyk Says ALDA Still hasn't Paid Him for Near-Fatal 2016 Stage Accident

Paul van Dyk broke multiple bones and suffered traumatic brain injury after a fall at ALDA’s 2016 A State of Trance Utrecht festival.

Eight years have passed since Paul van Dyk fell through an opening in the stage at Armin van Buuren‘s A State of Trance Utrecht, suffering injuries to his spine and brain that nearly claimed his life. ALDA, the event organizer, was ordered by a Dutch high court to pay van Dyk $12 million dollars — but he says he has yet to receive it, let alone an apology.

“As you may remember, on the 29.02.2016 I almost lost my life while performing at Armin van Buuren’s A State of Trance Utrecht festival, organized by his business associates at ALDA which was managed by Alan Hardenberg & David Lewis,” van Dyk wrote in social media posts. “Since then, it was legally established that their disregard for basic safety standards in stage building & event safety led to my fall & therefore left me with multiple broken bones including my spine, traumatic brain injury & health problems for the rest of my life.”

He continued: “The legal responsibility is very clear; ALDA has been held accountable, but even after 8 years, they have never acknowledged any responsibility, not given a simple apology & have not paid any of the court-ordered compensation to cover the economic damages they caused, as ordered by the highest court in the Netherlands. To the contrary, ALDA even tried to block the insurance to pay for my medical bills & that says everything about their character & decency.”

DJ Mag obtained a statement from ALDA in response to van Dyk’s claims. It reads: “We remember the 2016 incident very well and deeply regret the pain and difficult period Paul went through after his fall. However, this matter is in the hands of third parties (insurance companies/lawyers), therefore we are not able to make any further substantive statements about this.”

Paul van Dyk was among a handful of German techno DJs who achieved superstar status in the country’s emerging electronic music landscape after the fall of the Berlin Wall. He became closely associated with the trance genre that evolved out of techno thanks to albums like Seven Ways as well as Out There and Back. His dedication to the aesthetic that defined his early output has cemented him as an enduring figurehead among trance’s diehard fan base.

“But nobody & nothing can give me back my health or make up for what my family & friends had to go through,” Paul van Dyk concluded. “Even though they continue to hide from their responsibility I know for certain that justice will succeed in the end.”