The owners of the property where a hot air balloon crashed near Queenstown yesterday are hailing the brave actions of the experienced pilot on board at the time.
A sudden gust of wind caught the balloon as it approached its landing, which resulted in it crashing extremely close to a house.
The family who stepped up to help immediately after the accident spoke to 1 NEWS about the ordeal.
Carol Bunn is used to seeing hot air balloons land on her family property.
“They've been flying in our skies for 23 years now and so it's a regular occurrence..like I said they land on our farm very regularly,” she says.
But never like scenes from yesterday.
“I thought it was just slightly a rough landing because the wind came up just as he was about to put the balloon down,” Bunn recalls.
“I realised that something else had happened cause I could hear some yelling so I went outside.”
There, she was met by a horrifying scene - some of the 11 passengers on board were scattered across the field after the hot air balloon was swept off course by a big gust of wind.
“I said ‘everyone come inside and keep warm’ and got people blankets, sleeping bags, jerseys - whatever I could find in a big hurry and made sure they were comfortable,” she says.
The balloon belongs to Sunrise Balloons, a family-owned business that's been operating in the region since 1998.
“I was pleased that we could be there cause we've got a good connection with this company and we know them well,” Bunn says.
“We've all been up with Sunrise Balloons and had wonderful flights,” she says.
Bunn says the company has “very,very good procedures”.
“So I'm sure we'll go up again at some stage,” she says.
Carol Bunn's parents built their home in 1962, the house avoiding the crash by mere metres.
“Well that probably comes down to the experience of the pilot as well - so he managed to direct it away, I'd say, and most likely keep everyone as safe as possible in that circumstance so that's a pretty courageous thing to do,” Bunn says.
Most of the passengers were discharged from hospital yesterday, the two that were airlifted to Dunedin Hospital are now in a stable condition.
Two investigators from the Transport Accident Investigation Commission have flown in to start gathering evidence.
Their main focus will be on looking at any environmental factors that could have contributed to the crash, recovering any remaining wreckage and gathering witness statements.
The commission wants to hear from anyone who saw the accident particularly those who captured pictures or videos of the flight.
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