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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
World
Ryan Fahey

Panicking passengers crash-land tourist hot air balloon after pilot goes overboard

This is the moment passengers crash-landed a hot air balloon after the pilot fell to the ground mid-flight.

The incident took place in the municipality of Porto Feliz in the south-eastern Brazilian state of Sao Paulo earlier this month.

The hot air balloon had taken off from nearby Boituva with nine on board - the pilot, a photographer and seven passengers.

It was when the basket touched the ground during the first landing attempt that the pilot and two others were flung from it.

The pilot was still holding onto the rope as the balloon took to the skies again, but he let go and fell to the ground from a height of around five metres (16 feet).

As of yesterday morning, two women were still hospitalised - one in Sorocaba and the other in Sao Paulo.

Two female passengers were admitted to hospital after the crash (CEN)

Passengers would go on to say that the pilot had told them to prepare for the landing without telling them it was an emergency.

The balloon descended rapidly and the basket hit the ground with a thud, injuring everyone on board, in particular the two women.

The pilot, who survived his fall, later said he was forced into making an emergency landing due to a sudden change in the wind.

After the balloon retook to the skies, it was up to the remaining passengers to pull on the rope to make it descend to ground again, despite no prior training.

The passengers claimed the pilot failed to make them aware of the danger (CEN)

Investigators later said the balloon should not have taken off that day because of a prior weather warning of strong winds in the region.

They noted that of the 30 ballooning companies operating in the region, the one involved in the incident was the only one operating on that day.

The police are investigating the case to see if the company - Aventurar Balonismo - is liable for the crimes of bodily injury and life endangerment.

The company is currently maintaining that the weather conditions were favourable at the time.

And the pilot is claiming to the police that he had no decision-making power regarding the take-off.

The hot air balloon was seized as part of the investigation.

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