Communications tower collapses in Netherlands

AFP/The Hague

Talking point: A man takes a photo of the partially destroyed TV tower in Hoogersmilde

A fire caused a partial collapse of a 300m communications mast in northern Netherlands yesterday, knocking out television and radio stations, a local municipal official said.The fire at the television mast in Hoogersmilde in the Drenthe province, about 160km northeast of Amsterdam, broke out around 2pm (1200 GMT), said Midden-Drenthe municipality spokeswoman Miriam Fokkema.“There was a fire shortly before 2pm and then about 3.45pm, the upper part of the mast collapsed,” Fokkema told AFP.Dutch news agency ANP said a 200m-high metal mast collapsed on top of a 100m concrete tower after the fire broke out.“Nobody is believed to have been injured,” said Fokkema.The spokeswoman added that the area suffered severe communication problems with the tower used as a major broadcast hub for television, radio and telephone communications.