Houston, (PTI) Sixteen people were killed today when a large
hot air balloon caught fire and crashed in central Texas.
All 16 people aboard a hot air balloon died when it caught fire
and crashed in a field in central Texas, according to the Texas Department
of Public Safety.
The accident occurred shortly when the balloon crashed into a field
near Lockhart, Lynn Lunsford of the Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) said in a statement.
Debris at the crash site is directly below high-voltage power lines.
Hot air balloon crashes in the US are rare, and fatalities even rarer.
Between 1964 and 2013, the National Transportation Safety Board
investigated 760 hot air balloon accidents in the US, of which 67 were fatal.
Hot air balloons, which use propane gas to heat the air that rises
into the balloon and lifts it, are regulated like any other aircraft.
Hot air balloon pilots must be certified and the balloons must have
an air worthiness certificate. The FAA inspects the balloons used
for commercial ventures after 100 hours of flight time or at least
once a year, the FAA said in a statement.