Up and away! Oops... Crew escape unscathed as balloon crashes into house
Last updated at 12:18 AM on 14th August 2011
This is the moment a hot-air balloon crashed into a family home after hitting telephone lines and clipping two other houses.
Incredibly, the two-man crew escaped unscathed.
The blue-and-yellow balloon – which was taking part in Bristol’s International Balloon Fiesta – had lost height after the father-and-son crew swapped over the gas cylinders that power the burner and hit a chimney pot.
Collision: The out-of-control balloon crashes into home of sleeping family
Running out of air: The hot-air balloon lost height after the father-and-son crew swapped over the gas cylinders and hit a chimney pot
'It sounded like a bomb raid': Residents were woken at about 8.40am on Friday by the falling balloon when it crashed on to rooftops
Homeowner Leanne Scott, who lives in Bristol’s Victoria Park, was woken around 8.40am on Friday when the balloon collided with her chimney, about an hour after the Fleur de Lis balloon took off. She said: ‘It woke me up. It sounded like a bomb raid.’
The basket then smashed into a chimney on the house next door before hitting the home of Bernadine Nolan and her son Paul in nearby Alsop Street.
Paul said: ‘The bang woke me and I saw the flame-thrower outside the window before it flew off.’ His mother, Bernadine, added: ‘I saw it hitting the telephone lines and then the roof. I thought it was going to come through the bedroom window.’ More than 30 tiles were torn from her roof by the impact.
Uplifting: The annual Bristol International Balloon Fiesta got under way on Friday, August 12
Uprising: More than 60 balloons were launched in the Somerset city. The event attracts 500,000 people
Pilot Martin Read managed to steer the balloon away and landed around five miles away at Goose Green in the city.
An experienced pilot, Mr Read was flying with his stepson Terry Wetters. He said: ‘Once you make contact with a structure it becomes more of a problem and chances are you will hit something else.’
The Civil Aviation Authority will carry out an investigation into the incident.
The damage is expected to be covered by insurance.
Taking off: The international four-day event first started in 1978 and now attracts balloon teams from as far as the United States
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2025795/Bristol-International-Balloon-Fiesta-Crew-escape-unscathed-balloon-crashes-house.html#ixzz1V0hgdETn
No comments:
Post a Comment