by At least eight people died in a balloon accident in southern Brazil, the governor of the state of Santa Catarina said.
There were 21 people aboard the balloon in the city of Praia Grande on Saturday morning, Jorginho Mello posted on X.
Thirteen people, including the pilot, survived and nobody is missing, reported the State government news agency.
The National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) of Brazil said it “took all the necessary steps to investigate the condition of the plane and the crew”.
“According to the pilot, who is one of the survivors, a fire started in the basket, so he started to lower the balloon, and when the balloon was very close to the ground, he told people to jump,” said officer Tiago Luiz Lemos, from the police station of Praia Grande, reporters said on the spot.
“They started to jump, but some people were unable to grow. The flames started to grow and because of the weight the balloon started to rise again.
“It fell later due to a loss of suspension.”
The victims were two couples, a mother and daughter, an ophthalmologist and a figure skater.
The survivors were taken to nearby hospitals.
Ballondour company Sobrevoar Serviços Turísticos, who operated the flight, has now suspended its activities indefinitely.
It said that it had complied with all Anac’s instructions and had not had a previous history of accidents.
“Unfortunately, even with all the necessary precautions and the efforts of our experienced pilot – who followed all the recommended procedures and tried to save everyone on board – we are now confronted with the pain caused by this tragedy,” the company added.
In a video that was also placed on X, Mello said on an official mission in China, that he had sent “the entire state structure” to “help, help and comfort the families” and continued to follow the situation.
“We are in mourning, what happened is a tragedy,” he added.
“We will investigate why this happened. But the most important thing is to do everything possible to reach people and the families.”
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva placed on X who expressed his “solidarity with the families of the victims”.
He said that he had placed “the federal government available to the victims” and that “state and municipal troops” worked on the rescue and the care of the survivors.
Praia Grande, in southern Santa Catarina, is a popular tourist destination that is known for his ballooning activities.
Additional reporting by Danai Nesta Kupemba, Andre Biernath and Sofia Ferreira Santos
