Hot-air balloon crash in Brazil kills eight people
This photo released by the Santa Catarina Fire Department shows a rescue team member at the crash site in Praia Grande, State of Santa Catarina, southern Brazil, on 21 June 2025.
Photo:
Handout / Santa Catarina Fire Department / AFP
Eight people were killed after a hot-air balloon carrying 21 passengers, including the pilot, crashed in Brazil's southern state of Santa Catarina, state officials said.
The tourism balloon caught fire during the flight in the early morning hours on Saturday (local time), crashing in a forest area in the city of Praia Grande, according to the state fire department.
The city is a popular tourist spot for balloon trips in Brazil.
The Santa Catarina government estimates that 25 to 30 hot-air balloons depart daily from Praia Grande in peak season, with most of them having the capacity to transport as many as 25 people.
Thirteen survivors were transported to nearby hospitals, according to the fire department. A spokesperson of the department told local news outlet CNN Brasil that none of them were with their lives at risk.
In a post on X, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expressed solidarity with the families of the victims and said the federal government is available to local and state forces acting in the case.
- Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Otago Daily Times
10 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Eight killed in hot-air balloon crash in Brazil
A hot air balloon in the air in Brazil. Stock photo: Getty Eight people were killed when a hot-air balloon carrying 21 people, including the pilot, crashed on Saturday in Brazil's southern state of Santa Catarina, state officials said. The tourism balloon caught fire during the flight in early hours, crashing in a forest area in the city of Praia Grande, according to the state fire department. The city is a popular tourist spot for balloon trips in Brazil. The Santa Catarina government estimates that 25 to 30 hot-air balloons depart daily from Praia Grande in peak season, most of them having capacity to transport as many as 25 people. Thirteen survivors were taken to hospitals, according to the fire department. A spokesperson of the department told local news outlet CNN Brasil that none of them were with their lives at risk. In a post on X, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expressed solidarity with the families of the victims, saying the federal government was available to local and state forces acting in the case.
RNZ News
15 hours ago
- RNZ News
Hot-air balloon crash in Brazil kills eight people
This photo released by the Santa Catarina Fire Department shows a rescue team member at the crash site in Praia Grande, State of Santa Catarina, southern Brazil, on 21 June 2025. Photo: Handout / Santa Catarina Fire Department / AFP Eight people were killed after a hot-air balloon carrying 21 passengers, including the pilot, crashed in Brazil's southern state of Santa Catarina, state officials said. The tourism balloon caught fire during the flight in the early morning hours on Saturday (local time), crashing in a forest area in the city of Praia Grande, according to the state fire department. The city is a popular tourist spot for balloon trips in Brazil. The Santa Catarina government estimates that 25 to 30 hot-air balloons depart daily from Praia Grande in peak season, with most of them having the capacity to transport as many as 25 people. Thirteen survivors were transported to nearby hospitals, according to the fire department. A spokesperson of the department told local news outlet CNN Brasil that none of them were with their lives at risk. In a post on X, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expressed solidarity with the families of the victims and said the federal government is available to local and state forces acting in the case. - Reuters
RNZ News
4 days ago
- RNZ News
PM Christopher Luxon rejects idea of visa waivers, extended visas on first trip to China
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (centre) and Tourism Minister Louise Upston (to his left) at headquarters in Shanghai. Photo: RNZ / Craig McCulloch Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has poured cold water on the idea of complete visa waivers, or extended visas for "premium" travellers from China. On his first trip to China in the job, Luxon spent the morning visiting the headquarters of the country's top online travel agency to witness a deal being signed with Tourism New Zealand to coordinate marketing campaigns. He was given a tour of the building and treated to a high-tech multimedia display showcasing the demand for holidays from Chinese tourists. chief executive Jane Sun and vice president Edison Chen both used the opportunity to pitch the extended visa ideas to Luxon, but he told reporters it was not being considered. "Immigration New Zealand deals with immigration for 195 countries, what we've asked them to do since the beginning of the year as we go for growth is to continue to look at our settings with respect to China - are they appropriate? We believe they are," he said. "You're seeing us constantly adjust our visa settings ... we won't be doing that today, it's not something we've discussed or talked through." He denied it was about a lack of trust. "No, not at all. It's just Immigration New Zealand has a decision and a responsibility to look at the visa settings for 195 countries ... that's a decision for them to make," he said. "I'm really comfortable with Immigration New Zealand, I'm very comfortable with our visa settings." Luxon pointed to a 40 percent increase in interest in New Zealand from the platform over the last 30 days. Sun and Chen both commended Luxon for the government's Monday announcement the government would trial visa waivers for Chinese travellers arriving from Australia . Immigration NZ is also adding simplified Chinese content to its official website, and scrapping the requirement for certified translations on visa documents. "Those are the things that we're trying to do to make sure the visa encumbrance is as less as possible ... New Zealand's a pretty attractive proposition," Luxon said. The challenge New Zealand faced in recovering tourism from China was more to do with marketing than improving access, he said. "Just ask you to take a step back, this is a country where New Zealand's trade with the China economy is about a third of 1 percent ... so our biggest challenge is actually getting share of mind and raising the profile of New Zealand within China and that's a marketing challenge. "You have to be in the market advocating very strongly and there's no doubt about it we had a very inward-looking period, and we also actually were very slow coming out of Covid." Tourism Minister Louise Upston said that as suggestions about visa changes came up, they would be evaluated "on whether or not those support our aspirations". "We've had a number of suggestions put to me in my time as the minister and we have actively worked on a couple of them. There's another one coming, but we will consider other options as the months progress. "I want to make sure we're taking practical steps at a time rather than leaping into changes that would be more significant." She pointed to the marketing deal signed with saying it meant using technology "not just to launch to the China market but across the globe, making it very clear that New Zealand's open for business". Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
