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A hot air balloon pilot died after he fell from the basket. Brian Boland, 72, took off from Post Mills Airport in Vermont on Thursday (July 15) with four passengers.
At some point during the trip, the balloon began to descend, and the basket struck the ground and tipped over, causing one of the passengers to fall out. When the balloon started to ascend again, Boland "became entangled in gear affixed to the balloon" and found himself trapped underneath the basket, the Vermont State Police said.
Boland then fell from the balloon and crashed in a field where he was pronounced dead. Officials did not say how high the balloon was when Boland fell.
The hot air balloon then continued to travel north for another 1.5 miles and crossed state lines before getting stuck in a grove of trees in New Hampshire. Once the balloon had come to a stop, the remaining three passengers managed to climb down to safety and were unharmed. The other passenger who fell out of the balloon was also uninjured in the accident.
The National Transportation Safety Board said that it will launch an investigation into the tragic accident.