Fiery balloon crash leaves at least 16 dead in rural Texas

LOCKHART, Texas — A hot air balloon carrying at least 16 people caught on fire and crashed in Central Texas on Saturday, and there did not appear to be any survivors, authorities said.

Authorities would not confirm the number of deaths, but Lynn Lunsford with the Federal Aviation Administration said the balloon was carrying at least 16 people, and the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement that it didn’t look like anyone survived.

If 16 people were killed, it would be the one of the worst such disasters, possibly the worst in U.S. history. The deadliest such disaster happened 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

Saturday’s crash happened at about 7:40 a.m. in a pasture near Lockhart, which is about 30 miles south of Austin. The land near the crash site is mostly farmland, with corn crops and grazing cattle. Cutting through that farmland is a row of high-capacity electrical transmission lines about four to five stories tall. The site of the crash appears to be right below the overhead lines. Aerial photos showed an area of charred pasture underneath power lines.

Margaret Wylie lives about a quarter-mile from the crash site and said that she was letting her dog out Saturday morning when she heard a “pop, pop, pop.”

“I looked around and it was like a fireball going up,” she said, noting that the fireball was under large power lines and almost high enough to reach the bottom of them.

Wylie, who called 911, said that the weather seemed clear and that she frequently sees hot air balloons in the area.

Erik Grosof with the National Transportation Safety Board said at a news conference that the agency has deemed it a major accident and a full-bore investigation will start Sunday when more federal officials arrive. “This will be a difficult site for us to work through,” Grosof said.

The balloon was operated by Heart of Texas Hot Air Balloon Rides, according to two officials familiar with the investigation. The officials spoke on condition that they not be named because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly.

Heart of Texas’ website said it offers rides in the San Antonio, Houston and Austin areas. The operation does not appear to be registered with the state of Texas.

Authorities have not released the names of those who were on board and have not said who was flying the balloon.

RALPH BARRERA/AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN VIA AP The partial frame of a hot air balloon is visible above a crop field as investigators comb the wreckage of a crash Saturday near Lockhart, Texas. Authorities said at least 16 people were aboard and no survivors were found.