Egypt balloon crash kills tourists

Nineteen tourists reported dead in a hot air balloon crash near the southern Egyptian city of Luxor.

26 February 2013, 12:00am

1 min read

Up to 19 fatalities were confirmed after hot-air balloon carrying several foreign nationals went down near Luxor.

Egyptian police say at least 19 people have died after a hot-air balloon crashed near Luxor in the country's south.

The balloon was carrying several foreign nationals when it went down near the tourist town on Tuesday, state-run Nile TV said.

Ahmed Aboud, a spokesman for companies that operate balloon flights in the area, told Reuters news agency that the crash happened after a gas explosion when the balloon was 300 metres above the ground.

Ezzat Saad, the governor of Luxor, told Nile News that there were three people in hospital, including the Egyptian pilot of the balloon who suffered from 70 percent burns.

He did not specify the nationalities of the two other injured foreigners in hospital, but said one of them was undergoing surgery.

Saad listed the nationalities of the people on board as nine from Hong Kong; four Japanese; two Belgians; two British; two French; one Egyptian, in addition to the Egyptian pilot.

However, an employee of the company told AFP news agency operating the balloon said the tourists were from Korea, Japan, Britain, and Egypt.

Luxor is 510 kilometres south of Cairo, Egypt's capital.