Four people tragically died in a hot air balloon accident in Eloy, Arizona.
The crash occurred after eight skydivers had jumped from the balloon, leaving four passengers and the pilot on board.
The cause of the crash is yet to be determined. (Trending: Bombshell UFO Footage Released To The Public)
A skydiving outing on a hot air balloon went horribly wrong, leaving 4 people dead & a 5th critically hurt. The mom of one of the victims tells me her daughter came to AZ for the weekend to hike, explore, and skydive. Sadly, she died doing what she loved. https://t.co/TcU7rizIDv pic.twitter.com/gj10ndLEbL
— Micaela Marshall (@MMarshallTV) January 15, 2024
“Skydivers were able to exit the balloon without incident and complete their skydiving incident and that’s when something catastrophic happened and the balloon crashed to the ground,” KSAZ reported.
Eloy Police Chief Byron Gwaltney said, “The incident appeared to occur very quickly.”
“It’s just an absolute tragedy for our community and for the people that we’re working with today,” he continued.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration will conduct an investigation.
Eloy Police posted on Facebook, “We are working closely with federal agencies, including the NTSB and FAA, to investigate the cause of this tragic event.”
“While we continue our efforts, we ask for your thoughts and support for the families and loved ones affected during this difficult time,” the department continued.
The victims were identified as Katie Bartrom, a registered nurse from Indiana, and Cornelius van der Walt, the balloon’s pilot.
The accident is considered rare, as hot air ballooning is generally regarded as the safest form of air travel.
Skydiver David Boone said, “It hit me as a shock. Just because, you know, Cornelius is always super careful. He’s very, very aware of what he’s doing. He’s been doing it for a long, long time and he only got better with time.”
“He was just an excellent balloon pilot. It’s not like he wasn’t experienced [at] dropping skydivers. There’s definitely [a] different way to do it. So he knew what he was doing,” he continued.
Seattle Ballooning wrote, “According to the Aviation Accident Database put out by the FAA, hot air ballooning is the safest form of all air travel and are rarely involved in aviation crashes.”
“When compared to other forms of transportation, hot air ballooning is even safer. In fact, you are more likely to be injured while driving a car than you are while flying in a hot air balloon. This is because hot air balloons only fly in good weather and slow wind, which helps to prevent accidents,” continued the hot air balloon company.
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