8 Dead, 13 Injured After Hot Air Balloon Crash in Brazil
Originally appeared on E! Online
The people of Brazil are mourning a terrible tragedy.
A hot air balloon crashed June 21 in the municipality of Praia Grande, Brazil, leaving eight people dead and 13 more injured, according to a news release from the Government of Santa Catarina.
The balloon, which was carrying 21 people including the pilot, per the release, crash landed near a health center. No one is believed to be missing.
Following the fatal incident, Santa Catarina Governor Jorginho Mello—who was on an official trip to China at the time of the crash—sent his condolences to the victims and their families while emphasizing his commitment to investigating the matter.
'We are in mourning,' Mello said in a video posted on X (formerly Twitter) June 21, translated from Portuguese. 'A tragedy has happened. We will see how it unfolds, what happened, why it happened. But the important thing now is for the state structure to do what it can.'
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The 13 survivors were evaluated by firefighters and taken to nearby hospitals, according to a press release from the Santa Catarina Military Fire Department.
Meanwhile, officials offered a preliminary account of how the crash occurred.
'According to the pilot, who is one of the survivors, a flame started inside the basket and then he began to lower the balloon,' Praia Grande head police officer Tiago Luiz Lemos told Brazilian newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo, translated from Portuguese. 'When the balloon was very close to the ground, he ordered people to jump out of the basket.'
'Some were unable to jump,' he continued. 'The fire grew and the balloon ended up falling.'
While local authorities tend to the matter, Brazilian Prime Minister Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva also offered additional resources if necessary.
'I would like to express my solidarity with the families of the victims of the balloon accident that occurred this Saturday morning in Santa Catarina,' he wrote in a post on X translated from Portuguese. 'I would like to place the Federal Government at the disposal of the victims and the state and municipal forces that are working on the rescue and care for the survivors.'
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