Terrifying moment hot air balloon crashes back down to earth near Mexican pyramids - leaving at least 12 injured
The red and yellow balloon undertook a 'forced landing' in San Martin de las Piramides - a famous archaeological site - after hitting an air pocket, according to a statement from the civil protection agency for the state of Mexico.
The twelve people who were aboard the balloon were dashed to a local clinic to have their injuries treated, the statement added.
Footage of the incident saw the huge hot air balloon floating down towards the earth before hitting a fence.
The material was seen draped over the railing and power lines along Tuxpan Avenue, a two-lane road just over a thousand feet from the base of the Pyramid of the Moon, as onlookers watched from the pavement in shock.
The civil protection agency added that the balloon was operated by a tour company that offers hot air balloon rides to view the pyramids from the skies.
The Attorney General's Office for the state of Mexico reported that they are investigating a 29-year-old man whom police detained.
It comes after horrifying video captured the tragic moment a man fell to his death after dangling from a hot air balloon on fire in Mexico.
The tragedy occurred on May 11 at the First Balloon Festival in Zacatecas, Rodrigo Reyes Mugüerza, the Secretary General of Zacatecas, confirmed on social media.
The video footage showed the hot air balloon traveling in the air as the bottom half was engulfed in flames.
As smoke billowed from the balloon, a person could be seen dangling on a rope in the sky.
Mugüerza said that a participant 'lost his life' after an 'unfortunate incident' while on board a hot air balloon.
The man died from his injuries and was identified as a 40-year-old man by the name of Luicio N, according to local news outlet Riviera Maya News.
He reportedly was in the balloon with two other individuals when the fire broke out while they were still on the ground.
Luicio reportedly helped the other two passengers escape but was entangled in the rope while the balloon started to move. He was lifted into the air and dangled on the rope before falling.
Although hot air balloons can be dangerous, accidents are rarely fatal. A study from Gitnux cites that the mortality rate is less than 0.01 percent per flight.
Data from Gitnux argued that hot air balloons were safer than other forms of aviation, with roughly 1-2 accidents per 100,000 flights.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Boxer Julio Cesar Chavez Jr ‘DEPORTED and being held in maximum security Mexican prison over alleged cartel links'
BOXER Julio Cesar Chavez Jr has been deported from the United States. The 39-year-old was transferred to a prison in Sonora, Mexico to face drug trafficking-related charges on Monday. 2 2 An arrest warrant had already been issued by the Mexican authorities for charges of arms trafficking and organised crime. Prosecutors are currently working on the case. According to the Department of Homeland Security, Chavez Jr was arrested on July 2 in Southern California and detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It happened just days after his fight against YouTube star Jake Paul. The Mexican boxer lost the bout on points after 10 rounds. He later took to Instagram to write: "I could never knock him out. I couldn't knock out Jake Paul. "Whoever the judges want, wins. I put on a great show and well, I hit him in the ass like I said I was going to. "He said he was gonna drive me crazy, no, no. Here I am ready for what's next, thank you everyone." Chavez Jr's lawyer and family have rejected the accusations made against him. The boxer won the WBC middleweight title in 2011 against Sebastian Zbik but lost it the following year to Sergio Martinez. He tested positive for cannabis after the fight and was banned for nine months in addition to receiving a $900 fine. Chavez Jr is the son of legendary Mexican fighter, Julio Cesar Chavez.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Trump ally saves life of bleeding 11-year-old boy with tourniquet after nasty car wreck
A Republican congressman was shocked when he saw a minivan careen into a semi-truck at full speed on the highway, and luckily for those involved, his Navy SEAL training kicked in. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., saved the life of an 11-year-old boy after witnessing the wreck's fallout and quickly rushing into action. Van Orden, 55, was driving with his wife, Sara, down Interstate 35 near Osceloa, Iowa, on Saturday when he saw the crash in his rearview mirror. 'I'm watching a Dodge Grand minivan disintegrate. It seemed to drift off the road at about 70 miles per hour, more so on the passenger side of the car. My wife, Sarah, was like, what happened? I looked at it, I said, someone just died,' the lawmaker recounted to the Washington Examiner. The Wisconsin Republican and former SEAL Team Four member for over 20 years knew that he had to act. 'I ran to the passenger side, where all the damage was, and there was this 11-year-old kid, and I looked at him, and his calf, which is about as big as my thigh, was completely ripped apart, so I could see his tibia and his fibula, just a big chunk of him bleeding,' Van Orden shared. 'And he had an arterial bleed in his right wrist,' he added. What the former special operator did next harkened back to his days in combat: He returned to his car, retrieved a pair of socks and fastened them to create a makeshift tourniquet. 'By then, probably 10 people had also pulled over to help, I'm like, does somebody have a knife? And they're like, yep. So I cut the seat belts off and then made tourniquets,' the congressman told the outlet. Soon after Van Orden arrived at the scene, other good Samaritans also stopped by to aid the boy. The congressman praised the others alongside him who helped to administer care to the shocked family before first responders arrived. 'Some big old Iowa farm dude, probably 60-something, rips off a windshield wiper for his arm, then another lady there said she was a medic,' Van Orden recalled. 'She wound up grabbing a piece of metal and made a tourniquet on his leg, and then all of us packed him up and got him up into the ambulance.' Time was of the essence, too, as the injured boy was losing an immense amount of blood, the lawmaker said. For miles all around the interstate stretched rural farmland, and without rapid medical attention, 'he would've been gone,' Van Orden told the outlet. 'It took about 10 to 15 minutes. He would've bled to death,' the Republican disclosed. After the scary accident, Van Orden checked in on the boy on Monday at a hospital in Des Moines, Iowa. A photo released by the congressman's office shows him kneeling next to the boy in the hospital. The young man is seen flashing a thumbs-up while lying in his hospital bed as Van Orden, in a trucker hat, holds up what appears to be a puppy. The lawmaker said he was heartened by his fellow Americans' inclination to assist the impacted boy and his family. 'What happened out there is everything that I love about America. So we're in the middle of somewhere, and this happens, and people just start showing up. They start asking, 'Hey, can we do this? Can we do that?' he said.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Boxer Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. is jailed in Mexico after deportation
Boxer Julio César Chávez Jr. has been deported and imprisoned in his native Mexico, according to arrest documents from the country's National Detention Registry. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed the news of Chavez' impending incarceration on Tuesday. 'I understand he was deported. I don't know if it was yesterday or this morning, but we're informed that he was going to arrive in Mexico,' Sheinbaum told reporters. It's unclear where Chavez Jr. has been held since being taken into ICE custody in Los Angeles ' Studio City last month. He has since been transferred to a border checkpoint and jailed at a federal maximum-security prison in Hermosillo, Sonora. Chavez was picked up July 2 by ICE agents while riding his scooter in the upscale LA neighborhood of Studio City. 'Do you have anything in your shoes,' one agent is heard asking Chavez in Spanish in the clip recorded by Fox LA's Matthew Seedorff. 'No,' Chavez replied, before asking: 'Do you inform my lawyer when I have a warrant?' In its statement, DHS explained Chavez Jr's warrant related to 'his involvement in organized crime and trafficking firearms, ammunition, and explosives'. Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said: 'This Sinaloa Cartel affiliate with an active arrest warrant for trafficking guns, ammunition, and explosives was arrested by ICE. Chavez spent considerable time in his native Mexico and the US in recent years, but according to the Department of Homeland Security, his tourist visa expired in February of 2024. The agency further claimed Chavez filed several fraudulent statements while applying for permanent residence in April of 2024 after marrying Frida Muñoz, who is related to imprisoned Sinaloa cartel kingpin Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman. Chavez's father has openly spoken about his own relationships with the Sinaloa Cartel and, in particular, 'El Chapo.' In a podcast with journalist Javier Alarcon in 2021, Chavez revealed: 'Not just El Chapo, I've met all the most wanted drug traffickers, like Amado Carrillo, El Azul [Esparragoza], and El Mayo [Zambada]. 'I know them all, and they've all been my friends, but that's about it. Those people, if you know them, are good people.' Donald Trump's DHS has accused the Biden White House of allowing Chavez to re-enter the US illegally. 'It is shocking the previous administration flagged this criminal illegal alien as a public safety threat, but chose to not prioritize his removal and let him leave and COME BACK into our country,' assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. 'Under President Trump, no one is above the law—including world-famous athletes. Our message to any cartel affiliates in the U.S. is clear: We will find you and you will face consequences. The days of unchecked cartel violence are over.' Chavez Jr. has fought more than 60 times as a professional but the 39-year-old barely laid a glove on Paul during their recent fight. Paul, who was fighting for the first time since his controversial clash with Mike Tyson, won by scores of 99-91, 97-93 and 98-92.
