Eight Killed in Hot Air Balloon Crash in Brazil's Santa Catarina

Eight people were killed in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina on Saturday when a hot air balloon crashed to the ground after catching fire.

» Published: June 21 2025

Eight Killed in Hot Air Balloon Crash in Brazil's Santa Catarina
Photo: HANDOUT. Bilden har tillhandahållits av den lokala räddningstjänsten i delstaten Santa Catarina.

Share this article

Of the 21 people on board, 13 survived and are being treated in hospital.

We are in mourning. A tragedy has occurred. We will see how it develops, what happened, why it happened. But the important thing now is that the authorities do what they can, says Governor Jorginho Mello in a video on X.

Brazil's President Lula da Silva also expressed his solidarity with the victims' families and offered state support.

The cause of the accident is being investigated, but according to the pilot – who is one of the survivors – a fire started inside the basket, after which he began to lower the balloon.

"When the balloon was very close to the ground, he ordered people to jump out of the basket", writes the newspaper Folha de Sao.

The media company Globo reports that the flight was supposed to last 45 minutes, that the balloon reached a height of 1,000 meters and that the tickets cost around 1,000 kronor.

The company responsible says that they followed all rules and have not been affected by any accidents before. The company is cancelling all activities for an indefinite period.

The region is, according to Globo, a well-known destination for hot air balloon rides. According to the company, another hot air balloon accident occurred in the state of São Paulo, north of Santa Catarina, less than a week ago, where a woman died and eleven people were injured.

Loading related articles...

Author

TTT
By TTEnglish edition by Sweden Herald, adapted for local and international readers
Loading related posts...