Breaking: 16 killed in hot air balloon fire

balloon 1

A typical hot air balloon

A typical hot air balloon
A typical hot air balloon
A hot-air balloon carrying at least 16 people caught fire and crashed in central Texas on Saturday, federal officials said, and the local authorities said no one had survived.

Lynn Lunsford, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said in a statement that the balloon had crashed into a pasture near Lockhart, about 30 miles south of Austin, after catching fire in the air. The accident occurred shortly after 7:40 a.m. local time, he said.

In a brief telephone interview, Mr. Lunsford said that officials were on their way to the site and that the National Transportation Safety Board had been notified. The N.T.S.B. will be in charge of the investigation.

The names of the pilots and passengers and their relations to one another were not released. Mr. Lunsford said he did not know what had led to the crash or if there had been a distress call.

The Caldwell County sheriff, Daniel Law, said in a statement, “It does not appear at this time that there were any survivors.”

Margaret Wylie, 66, who lives a quarter-mile from the crash site, saw the balloon explode into a fireball after it struck the ground on a neighbor’s property, she said. She said she had been at her back porch when her dog “really started raising the roof.”

“When I looked over toward my neighbor’s property,” Ms. Wylie said, “that’s about the time I saw flames shooting out sideways and then just a fireball. At 66, that’s not something I want to see again.”

Erik Grosof, an official with the N.T.S.B., said the crash had been classified as a major accident because of its “significant loss of life.” A full N.T.S.B. investigative team was to arrive at the scene later Saturday, he said, and the F.B.I. had been asked to help look at the evidence, a normal request after major accidents.

Asked to confirm reports that 16 people had been killed, Mr. Grosof said, “Right now we have a number of fatalities.”

Related News

Sixteen deaths would rank the accident as one of the worst hot-air balloon crashes in history, surpassed only by a crash in Luxor, Egypt, that killed 19 people in February 2013.

In that crash, the balloon was sailing over archaeological sites at dawn when a fire caused an explosion in a gas canister and the balloon plummeted more than 1,000 feet to the ground. Two people survived the crash — the pilot and a passenger who jumped from the basket from about 30 feet. Nineteen tourists died, including the husband of the surviving passenger.

Before Saturday, the worst balloon accident in the United States was in August 1993 in Woody Creek, Colo., near Aspen, when a wind gust blew a balloon into a power line complex. The basket was severed and fell more than 100 feet to the ground, killing all six people aboard.

Replying to a question at a news conference, Mr. Grosof said it was his “understanding” that the balloon tour was run by a company called Heart of Texas. Calls to the company were not answered, but a person who spoke at its reservation service said the company offered flights in the Austin area coinciding with the sunrise. It also operates in other areas, such as near San Antonio. She declined to speak about the accident.

The sheriff’s statement said that a call came in to the local law enforcement authorities after 7:40 a.m. reporting a possible vehicle accident. When emergency responders arrived, “it was apparent that the reported fire was the basket portion of a hot-air balloon,” the statement said.

“The balloon was occupied, and it does not appear at this time that there were any survivors of the crash,” the statement said. “Investigators are determining the number and the identities of victims at this time.”

Chris O’Neil, an N.T.S.B. spokesman, said investigators were expected to remain on the scene for a few days. Seven to 10 days after the field work is completed, he said, they will release a preliminary report on the accident.

Gov. Greg Abbott issued a statement extending his condolences, calling the accident a “heartbreaking tragedy.”

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families, as well as the Lockhart community,” he said. “The investigation into the cause of this tragic accident will continue, and I ask all of Texas to join us in praying for those lost.”

Load more