Not exactly smooth sailing at the 52nd Albuquerque balloon fiesta after 4 incidents

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A drone show and a flawless mass ascension closed out Sunday’s final day of the 52nd Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. But this year’s hot air balloon event wasn’t all plain sailing.

One balloon partially caught fire Saturday after hitting power lines and landing at a construction site in northwest Albuquerque. Fiesta officials say no one was injured and the fire was quickly extinguished.

On Friday, a balloon pilot with two passengers on board struck a radio tower and crashed west of Balloon Fiesta Park.

It was the second time in twenty years that a balloon came into contact with that tower.

The pilot and passengers were unharmed in the crash and were able to land safely, but the radio station was off the air until Saturday.

One person reportedly suffered a head injury Wednesday when a balloon hit a large tree while trying to land on a golf course. The gondola became stuck 25 feet above the ground and the other two people on board the balloon had to be rescued.

On Tuesday, nearly 13,000 customers were without power for nearly an hour after a balloon crashed into a power line in Albuquerque.

“We are concerned when balloon flights do not proceed as planned,” Fiesta spokesman Tom Garrity said in a statement. “Safe flights are our main goal, so every accident is too many.”

The nine-day celebration is one of the world’s most photographed events, drawing hundreds of thousands of spectators to New Mexico each fall to see more than 100 balloons in bright colors and special shapes.