Horrifying new footage shows huge blaze just moments after Arizona hot air balloon crashed in the desert and killed four
New images show the immediate aftermath of the Arizona hot air balloon crash that killed four passengers and seriously injured another.
A huge fire broke out at the crash site, sending a plume of dark smoke billowing into the air.
Aerial footage shows firefighters arriving to extinguish the blaze, spraying away the blackened earth from under their boots.
The balloon crashed at 8 a.m. Sunday in a rural area about five miles north of the city of Eloy.
According to Mayor Micah Powell, there were 13 people on board – eight paratroopers, four passengers and a pilot.
New images show a wall of flames at the site of the Arizona hot air balloon crash that killed four people and left another person in critical condition at a local hospital
Aerial footage shows firefighters arriving to battle the blaze, leaving the ground completely charred
The balloon fell from the sky around 8 a.m. Sunday after an “unspecified problem” with the envelope, the National Transportation Safety Board said.
The eight paratroopers jumped from the plane before the incident, leaving five people in the gondola.
Eloy Police Chief Byron Gwaltney said they were able to “exit the balloon without incident” to complete a “planned skydiving” event shortly before the balloon went down.
He said the paratroopers planned to land at Eloy Municipal Airport, near the accident site.
“The incident seemed to happen very quickly,” Gwaltney said. “It’s just an absolute tragedy for our community and for the people we work with today.”
Preliminary information from the National Transportation Safety Board indicates that the balloon crashed due to an “unspecified problem” with the envelope.
The first victim was named Kaitlynn “Katie” Bartom, 28, a registered nurse from Indiana.
Bartrom worked at Fort Wayne Lutheran Hospital on the Advanced Cardiac Therapy floor and had recently graduated from nursing school.
Chayton Wiescholek, 28, Atahan Kiliccote, 24, and Cornelius Van Der Walt, 37, also died in the crash.
The first victim was identified as 28-year-old Kaitlynn “Katie” Bartrom, a registered nurse from Indiana
Cornelius van der Walt, 37, was piloting the balloon before the tragic crash. He was from South Africa and lived in the town of Eloy, about eight kilometers from the scene of the incident
Atahan Kiliccote, 24, will graduate from Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering in 2022
Chayton Wiescholek, 28, was on the plane with his girlfriend Kinsey. She was one of eight skydivers who jumped shortly before the crash
Van der Walt was identified as the pilot. The 37-year-old was from South Africa but lived in Eloy.
“I’m so sorry the public will probably remind you of this one flight,” friend Phil Brandt wrote on Facebook.
“Just know that so many others, including myself, know that you were a wonderfully good man and a great pilot.”
Kiliccote, from Cupertino, California, attended Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering and will graduate in 2022.
Wiescholek was from Union City, Michigan. His girlfriend Kinsey was one of eight paratroopers who jumped from the balloon shortly before the crash.
She was the last person to hear from him before his death.
“He texted her on the way down saying, ‘Goodbye, this isn’t going to be good, I love you,’ and signed off,” Wiescholek’s father told FOX 10.
Once Kinsey landed, she saw the text and immediately called her friend. When someone else answered the phone, she took off her harness and ran two miles to reach him, Wiescholek’s mother said.
Valerie Stutterheim, a 23-year-old Scottsdale resident, is the only surviving passenger. She remains in critical condition at a local hospital.