Hot air balloon catches fire in Texas, 16 dead

A hot air balloon carrying at least 16 people caught on fire and crashed in central Texas on Saturday, and it seems there are no survivors.

“If 16 people were killed, it would be the one of the worst such disasters, possibly the worst in U.S. history,” AP says, citing a similar tragedy that occurred in February 2013, when a balloon flying over Luxor, Egypt, caught fire and plunged 1,000 feet to the ground, crashing into a sugar cane field and killing at least 19 foreign tourists.

The Texas crash happened at approximately 7:40 a.m. near Lockhart, which is about 30 miles south of Austin. According to AP, “authorities have not said where the hot air balloon was based out of or which company was flying it, though Caldwell County Sheriff Daniel C. Law told The Associated Press that it’s the kind of situation where people can walk up and buy a ticket, unlike an airplane, which would have a list of names.”

Erik Grosof of the National Transportation Safety Board told a news conference that a full investigation will begin Sunday.

A hot-air balloon that crashed in Virginia in May 2014 caught fire, resulting in the death of three people.

By: Atara Beck, World Israel News

Share
Published by
Atara Beck
Tags: Texas Tragedy

Recent Posts

  • Arab-Israeli Conflict

Israel braces for possible Hamas, Hezbollah attacks as election nears

Israeli security officials warn that Iranian proxy groups like Hamas and Hezbollah may be planning…

1 hour ago
  • Jewish Diaspora & Antisemitism

‘Long live Yahya Sinwar!’ – NY teacher glorified Oct. 7 mastermind

Former politician Dov Hikind called for the teacher’s dismissal over his support for Sinwar.

2 hours ago
  • Israel News

IDF intel: 2/3 of Oct. 7 terrorists hunted down, eliminated

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that terrorists responsible for the October 7 attack are 'living…

2 hours ago
  • World News

Spain’s anti-Israel PM calls snap elections after his minority gov’t failed in key vote

Pedro Sánchez, one of Europe’s fiercest Israel critics, calls snap Spanish election after housing vote…

2 hours ago
  • Israel News

Slain hostage Almog Sarusi’s parents welcome newborn son

Three years after their son was abducted by Hamas terrorists, who later murdered him, the…

3 hours ago
  • Videos

WATCH: Compilation exposes Tucker Carlson excusing Hitler and Nazism

A disturbing compilation lays bare Tucker Carlson's extremist views, including dozens of examples of the…

4 hours ago