Moulin Rogue: windmill blades of iconic Paris cabaret club collapse and crash onto Montmartre street

The famous red windmill blades of Paris’ legendary cabaret club Moulin Rogue have collapsed.

The club, known as the birthplace of the modern can-can, is one of the most recognisable sights in the French capital and welcomes more than half a million visitors each year. Locals and tourists were then shocked this morning when the famed red blades were missing from the front of the building.

It is believed that the windmill collapsed overnight, but it is not yet known why the structure fell. A spokesperson for the club, located at the famous Montmartre hill, said: “We do not know what happened, it occurred between 2am and 3am, no one was hurt.”

A show was held last night, which ended at 1.15am. According to AFP, a venue official added that the windmill mechanism is checked any week and there were no problems which were noted during the last inspection.

Firefighters were spotted in front of the building gathering piece of the windmill together to clear from the street. It appeared that the the letters ‘M’, ‘O’ and U’ from the illuminated sign were also missing.

Moulin Rogue was opened in 1889 and became on the Paris’ must-see landmarks for tourists. In 1915, a fire ripped through the original building, which forced the venue to closed for a total of nine years.

It comes only a few short months before thousands of tourists are expected to descend on the French capital for the Summer Olympics 2024 in July and August.