A hot-air balloon caught fire while in the air and crashed near Richmond on Friday night.
The balloon caught fire shortly before 8 p.m., near Meadow Event Park. The inaugural Mid-Atlantic Balloon Festival was scheduled for today and Sunday at the park. On Friday night, teams of balloons were also to take off and return, according to the festival website.
Carrie Hager-Bradley said she saw the balloon in flames and heard people yelling, according to local TV station WWBT.
“They were just screaming for anybody to help them,” the station quoted her as saying.
Ms Geller said officers have been searching for the balloon on the ground overnight but have been unable to carry out an air search because of stormy conditions.
She said: “We will continue through the night. We’ve got additional resources coming in until we find the wreckage.”
The apparent crash is said to have happened near the site of the Mid-Atlantic Balloon Festival.
The festival was scheduled to begin today but organisers have cancelled the event, according to reports.
Agencies/Canadajournal
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