A hot air balloon caught fire and tumbled from the sky on Saturday in Brazil’s southern state of Santa Catarina, killing at least eight people and injuring 13, officials said.
In a video on social media, two people can be seen falling through the air as the fire spread onboard the aircraft. Footage shared by local news outlet G1 showed billows of smoke coming from the balloon in flames as it hurtled towards the ground.
Three people died hugging each other, said Ulisses Gabriel, chief of Santa Catarina’s civil police force, on X. “It hurts the soul.”
Thirteen people survived and were taken to hospitals, Santa Catarina’s military fire brigade said, adding that 21 people were on board, including the pilot.
CBMSC/ Brazil / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images 
Sobrevoar, the company responsible for the multi-colored balloon, said it complied with all regulations and had a clean accident record before Saturday.
“Despite all necessary precautions and the efforts of our pilot — who has extensive experience and followed all recommended procedures in an attempt to save everyone on board the balloon — we are suffering from the pain caused by this tragedy,” it said in a statement.
Sobrevoar added that it was suspending all operations for an indefinite period.
“We are in mourning. A tragedy has happened. We will see how it unfolds, what happened, why it happened. But the important thing now is for the state structure to do what it can,” Gov. Jorginho Mello said in a video on X.
Mello said he has asked authorities to head to the municipality “to do as much as possible to rescue, to help, to take to hospital, to comfort the families.”
“According to the pilot, who is one of the survivors, a fire started inside the basket and then he began to lower the balloon. When the balloon was very close to the ground, he ordered people to jump out of the basket,” Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper quoted Praia Grande head police officer Tiago Luiz Lemos as saying.
“Some of them didn’t manage to jump. The fire increased and the balloon ended up falling,” Lemos added.
CBMSC/ Brazil / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images 
G1 reported that the balloon’s expected flight time was 45 minutes, with the balloon reaching 1000 meters, and it cost 550 reais (around $100) per passenger.
Praia Grande is a common destination for hot air ballooning, a popular activity in some parts of Brazil’s south during June festivities that celebrate Catholic saints such as Saint John.
Last Sunday, a balloon fell in São Paulo state, killing a 27-year-old woman and injuring 11 others, G1 reported.
There have been several fatal hot air balloon crashes elsewhere in recent years.
Last year, four people were killed when a hot air balloon crashed in Arizona. Also in 2024, a man fell to his death from a hot air balloon as it passed over Melbourne, Australia.
In 2023, two people died and a girl was injured after the hot air balloon they were riding in caught fire near Mexico City.
Five people died in 2021 after a hot air balloon crashed into power lines in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
