Two people were seriously injured while nine others suffered bruises after a hot air balloon crashed in a popular tourist town in the South Island of New Zealand on Friday. The crash occurred at about 10 am local time near Morven Ferry Road in Arrowtown, police officials told Reuters. While there were no fatalities, two people were transported by helicopter to Dunedin Hospital, the police said.
It was initially believed that the balloon crashed into a house, but officials clarified that it had landed on a farm where it was meant to land. It is said that there were numerous power lines visible at the site. Jim Boult, the Mayor of the Queenstown-Lakes district, had reportedly told local media that it wasn’t an emergency landing, but that the landing itself went wrong. Emergency services are still responding to the incident. At the request of the emergency services, the power company turned off the power, leaving at least 160 houses in nearby suburbs without electricity. Hot balloon flight is one of the popular touring attractions in New Zealand, but tragedy did happen before.
