Hot air balloon crash in Brazil kills at least 8 after midair fire

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Emergency services operate at the area where a hot air balloon crashed, leaving at least 8 dead in Santa Catarina, Brazil on June 21, 2025. (Photo by CBMSC/ Brazil / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

RIO DE JANEIRO - Firefighters in Brazil said at least eight people were killed after a hot-air balloon caught fire and tumbled from the sky on Saturday in the southern state of Santa Catarina.

Footage shared by local news outlet G1 showed billows of smoke coming from the balloon in flames as it hurtled toward the ground in the municipality of Praia Grande.

What we know:

Three people died hugging each other, said Ulisses Gabriel, chief of Santa Catarina's civil police force, on X. "It hurts the soul."

On a video on social media, two people can be seen falling through the air as the fire spread onboard the aircraft.

Thirteen people survived and were taken to hospitals, Santa Catarina’s military fire brigade said, adding that 21 people were on board including the pilot.

The crash happened at around 8 a.m. local time, said Lt. Col. Zevir Cipriano Jr., a military firefighter. A fire started in the basket, prompting the pilot to try to land the balloon.

Thirteen people, including the pilot, managed to jump out but eight were unable to. Without the weight of the others, the balloon began rising again.

What we don't know:

A cause has not been revealed. 

Authorities have opened an investigation and the results will be made public within 30 days, Santa Catarina's public safety secretary Col. Flávio Graff told journalists. According to the civil police, the pilot has given testimony and they will also gather statements from survivors, Graff added.

What they're saying:

"We are in mourning. A tragedy has happened. We will see how it unfolds, what happened, why it happened. But the important thing now is for the state structure to do what it can," Gov. Jorginho Mello said in a video on X.

Mello said he has asked authorities to head to the municipality "to do as much as possible to rescue, to help, to take to hospital, to comfort the families."

"According to the pilot, who is one of the survivors, a fire started inside the basket and then he began to lower the balloon. When the balloon was very close to the ground, he ordered people to jump out of the basket," Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper quoted Praia Grande head police officer Tiago Luiz Lemos as saying.

"Some of them didn’t manage to jump. The fire increased and the balloon ended up falling," Lemos added.

Dig deeper:

G1 reported that the balloon's expected flight time was 45 minutes, with the balloon reaching 1000 meters, and cost 550 reais (around $100) per passenger.

What's next:

Sobrevoar, the company responsible for the multicolored balloon, said it complied with all regulations and had a clean accident record prior to Saturday.

"Despite all necessary precautions and the efforts of our pilot — who has extensive experience and followed all recommended procedures in an attempt to save everyone on board the balloon — we are suffering from the pain caused by this tragedy," it said in a statement.

Sobrevoar added that it was suspending all operations for an indefinite period.

Big picture view:

Praia Grande is a common destination for hot-air ballooning, a popular activity in some parts of Brazil's south during June festivities that celebrate Catholic saints such as St. John, whose feast day is on June 24.

Last Sunday, a balloon came down in Sao Paulo state, killing a 27-year-old woman and injuring 11 other people, G1 reported.