Published Thursday, Sept. 12, 2019 | 2:13 p.m.
Updated Thursday, Sept. 12, 2019 | 5:56 p.m.
Nine people aboard a hot air balloon were injured Thursday morning in a hard landing near Goodsprings, about 40 miles south of Las Vegas, according to Metro Police.
One of the victims had serious injuries but was expected to survive, while the other eight suffered minor injuries, police said.
The incident was reported about 9:25 a.m. some 3.5 miles north of Goodsprings, police said. The balloon's operator was trying to land when the basket tipped over, throwing five people out, including the pilot, said police and the Federal Aviation Administration.
The gondola then bounced around for about a half-mile, ejecting the rest of the passengers, said Ian Gregor, spokesman for the federal agency.
The person with the most serious injuries was airlifted to University Medical Center, police said. The others onboard were also taken to the hospital, police said.
Metro, the Clark County Fire Department and the Bureau of Land Management responded, with the FAA leading the investigation. The Kubicek balloon was manufactured in 2018 and registered to a resident from Albuquerque, N.M., according to FAA records. Its certification runs until April 2021.
Further details were not immediately available.
