The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a hot air balloon crash near Las Vegas.
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The incident left one member of a Mississippi family seriously injured. Other passengers suffered burns and other injuries after the smooth ride turned into a hard landing near the end of the flight.
What Happened On the Hot Air Balloon Ride?
On the morning of Thursday, June 18, someone alerted authorities to the crash by texting 911. According to a statement by the Nye County Sheriff's Office, the message said "that there had been a hot air balloon crash in the Stewart Valley dry lake west of Pahrump," outside Las Vegas.
As reported by PEOPLE, Brant Kairit and his family were among the 10 people on board the hot air balloon. They were in town to see Kenny Chesney and decided to go on a ride.
"It was a wonderful experience, until the last 30 seconds," Kairit said. "We landed and went up in the air for a little bit — 20, 30 feet — and it [the balloon basket] tipped over on its side with the smaller rectangular part on the ground."
Then a Fire Started...
Kairit was left on the ground. The rest of his family was on the other side of the basket, sticking up in the air.
Nye County Sheriff Joe McGill said, "The occupants of the basket all fell on top of each other, and during a rolling or bumping the ground or whatever, the gas actuator was bumped, which caused the gas to ignite."
Kairit's family was able to get out and start stomping out the fire. However, his wife was injured in the crash.
"Once I got out, there was smoke and fire and blood everywhere," he said.
There was no cell service at the crash site, so passengers alerted authorities about the incident through text messaging. They then drove themselves to a hospital. One passenger suffered a "severe head injury." Others had third-degree burns and "other blunt force injuries."
According to Kairit, his wife has broken bones in her nose and sternum and fractures in her back. She was hospitalized as of Sunday, June 21, but was "doing really well."
The FAA said in a preliminary report that the balloon was hit by a "gust of wind" as it was landing, causing it to bounce off the ground.
