Hot air balloon bursts into flames in NZ; 11 dead
By RAY LILLEY Associated Press The Associated Press
Friday, January 6, 2012 11:05 PM EST
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A hot air balloon carrying 11 people turned into a horrifying tower of "sheer flame" Saturday after hitting power lines near a rural New Zealand town, police and witnesses said. All aboard were killed in the deadliest air crash in New Zealand in nearly 50 years.
Two of those killed jumped out of the basket in desperation before the fiery balloon plummeted to farmland with a loud bang as it hit the ground. The balloon crashed near the township of Carterton, in a region well known for its hot air ballooning, in clear, bright early morning conditions with minimal wind.
The pilot and five couples from the Wellington area, about 95 miles (150 kilometers) south of the crash site, were killed. Some of the bodies were badly burned, said Superintendent Mike Rusbatch, a police district commander in Wellington, the capital.
"It's a tragedy as bad as tragedies get," local police commander Brent Register said.
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