Hot air balloons have a very serene nature about them, going about the business of transporting people, slowly, allowing the passengers to take photos, and generally not be scared through the whole experience. Even when they crash, they don’t do so violently, as this video, shot in the Dutch town of Almere, located some 34 km/21 miles outside Amsterdam, shows.
Reportedly carrying eleven people onboard, it started losing altitude, before crashing into a lake, then slowly blocking an nearby road. Nobody was seriously hurt, though, two of the passengers were taken to hospital with minor injuries. Apparently, while boats were immediately dispatched to help the people escape, all had already done so and had swum to safety.
The situation would have been a lot trickier for those trapped onboard, if the balloon hadn’t continued to move in its original direction, which incidentally brought the people closer to the shore. Local authorities currently have no idea what caused the incident, but as always happens with these cases, an investigation has been started.
By Andrei Nedelea
VIDEO