Man in 20s dies in horror hot air balloon fireball that plunged ‘like a rocket’
A man in his 20s has tragically died in a freak hot air balloon crash today (June 25) after it burst into flames in mid-air before crashing down.
Snaps have revealed that the balloon was hundreds of feet in the air as it burst into flames, before it plunged to the ground near Ombersley Court in Worcestershire early this morning, at around 6.20am.
Firefighters, paramedics and police said they rushed to the scene but were unable to save the as-yet-unnamed male pilot who was declared dead at the scene.
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Cops have now revealed that the victim has been identified and was in his 20s, adding that his family are being supported by family liaison officers.
One witness to the horrific crash said: “Suddenly there was a flash and what looked like a fireball coming from a blue balloon and it just dropped like a stone.
“My wife heard terrible screaming and then silence.
“We called the emergency services but had difficulty getting through on the 999 number because it was down.
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“We finally got through but it was just too high for anyone to survive. It was a terrible thing to see.”
Another, who was driving along the A449 from Kidderminster to Worcester when he saw the balloon explode, said: "Once it caught fire it went up like tissue paper, it was burnt in about 10 seconds. We couldn’t believe it.
"We thought from that height there would definitely be a fatality. It fell like a rocket and shook us up to watch."
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While the horrific crash came as hundreds of people were enjoying Worcester’s first ever balloon festival near the city’s racecourse, the organisers were quick to distance themselves from the incident.
An event spokesperson said: “There was an incident this morning, under investigation, it wasn’t the festival it was independent.
“The festival finished last night, it was not connected to the festival.”
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It is currently unclear whether the crash balloon had taken part in the festival.
The event was cancelled last month due to bad weather and was rearranged to take place from Friday to Saturday evening.
Thousands reportedly attended the festival, which saw dozens of hot air balloons fly across the West Midlands.
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A spokesperson for Hereford and Worcestershire Fire Service: "We went out to an incident involving a hot air balloon in Ombersley on the Holt Fleet Road.
"We had a call at 6.23am, crews from Worcester, Droitwich, Wyre Forest, Evesham and Bromsgrove.
"We have left the scene now, but we have left it to the police."
The tragedy has been reported to the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) who tweeted they were “deploying a team to the site”.
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