3 missing in fiery hot-air balloon crash
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/05/09/hot-air-balloon-crash/8926061/

A hot-air balloon struck a Va. power line and burst into flames as the Mid-Atlantic Balloon Festival was kicking off.

Searchers and rescue workers are scouring a rural area in central Virginia after a hot-air balloon carrying three people caught fire and crashed Friday night.

The balloon was part of the Mid-Atlantic Balloon Festival, an event taking place at the Meadow Event Park in Caroline County, Va., but the incident took place several miles away from the park, said Greg Hicks, the park's vice president of communications.

Virginia State Police and the Federal Aviation Administration were investigating, Hicks said.

Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corrine Geller said at a press conference late Friday that three hot-air balloons took off from Meadow Event Park shortly before 8 p.m. ET Friday evening and headed northeast to a pre-approved landing zone about two miles away from the park. Two of the balloons landed safely. But as the third balloon attempted to land, witnesses said it struck a power line and burst into flames near the Caroline Pines subdivision.

Based on witness accounts, including information from the other two balloon pilots at the scene, the basket -- or gondola -- of the doomed balloon caught fire and two explosions occurred, the second of which severed the gondola from the balloon, Gellar said.

Due to the fact that the balloon and gondola separated during the blaze, with the balloon ascending and the gondola descending, authorities were searching for two crash sites, she said.

No wreckage has yet been found.

A pilot and two passengers were believed to be aboard, she said. According to witnesses, it appeared the pilot tried emergency measures, and the two passengers may have jumped from the fiery gondola.

"We will continue through the night," Geller said. "We've got additional resources coming in until we find the wreckage."

Bad weather initially halted the air search, but it has since resumed. Virginia State Police, the Federal Aviation Administration, local law enforcement and EMS personnel are combing the area. Additional resources will be deployed Saturday at dawn, and the NTSB has been briefed.

Gellar said grid searches are being conducted, but are hampered by darkness, dense forest and rough terrain. She also said police "have an idea (of the identities of the missing) and have been reaching out to family members."

The Meadow Event Park is known for being the birthplace of thoroughbred race horse Secretariat.

The Mid-Atlantic Balloon Festival was scheduled to take place at the park Saturday and Sunday. According to the park's website, a "Friday Flights Happy Hour" kicked off roughly two hours before the crash.

Balloon teams from across the country were expected to take part in the weekend event, but a statement posted Friday evening on the festival's website announced the festival had been canceled due to the accident and tickets would be refunded.
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HOLY SHIT!

Airborne meth lab accident

********************************************************************************************************
Because I can and there's nothing you can do about it

I heard it was something about a local contractor, illegal immigrants, and stashing bodies in order not to pay them.

was there a Super Hot EMT there to assist?

Jeez...this story really BURNS ME UP.

bad way to die.

One body has been found. http://wtvr.com/2014/05/10/hot-air-balloon-fire-saturday-am-update/

This story is just a bunch of hot air

Otis the Drunk Wrote:
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> Airborne meth lab accident

You're full of shit. Something a pussy would post.

Liberals should never get into a hot air balloon.

PemnV Wrote:
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> Liberals should never get into a hot air balloon.

Or, they should all get in hot air balloons!

This thread is chock full of inflated egos... get it?

such a deflating story

Ralph Pootawn Wrote:
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> such a deflating story

Yea, it really brings me down.

Evil Bunch Wrote:
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> This thread is chock full of inflated egos... get
> it?

No

That's a strange way to try to get "closer to God".

Good bunch Wrote:
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> Evil Bunch Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > This thread is chock full of inflated egos...
> get
> > it?
>
> No


See...because balloons are inflat.....all right, we get it.

Firegirl Wrote:
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> was there a Super Hot EMT there to assist?


I see what you did there

Evil Bunch Wrote:
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> Good bunch Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Evil Bunch Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > This thread is chock full of inflated egos...
> > get
> > > it?
> >
> > No
>
>
> See...because balloons are inflat.....all right,
> we get it.

Oh, I get it now! That sure was funny.

Second Body Found in Hot Air Balloon Accident Search
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/second-body-found-hot-air-balloon-accident-search-n102161

A second body was found Saturday morning following a fiery hot air balloon accident in eastern Virginia that left two people dead and crews searching for a third victim, officials said.

The body was located around 11 a.m. in a wooded area of Caroline County, Virginia, State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said during a news conference.

The balloon, carrying three people, ascended 8 p.m. Friday as part of a precursor to the Mid-Atlantic Balloon Festival scheduled for Saturday and Sunday at Meadow Event Park. But officials say it hit a utility line, which caused it to erupt into flames, shoot into the sky and then explode.

The first body was discovered south of where the second victim was found, Geller said, but she did not know how far apart they were. Identities have not yet been released.

The search area is densely wooded, posing a challenge to the 100 personnel conducting the ground search for the third body and remnants of the balloon, Geller said.

The process is also moving slowly because crews are being “meticulous — so nothing gets overlooked,” Geller said.

“We will stay here until the third occupant is located,” Geller said, adding, “We’re very hopeful that we will locate the third occupant.”

The search teams were also dedicated to finding the basket of the vehicle and the balloon, but “we’re not sure what’s left of it,” Geller said, pointing out that the remnants could have been incinerated.

But Sam Parks, President of the Balloon Federation of America said he’s confident the balloon will be found. “To have such a large piece of material disappear would be highly unlikely,” Parks said, pointing out that balloons stand seven stories high when inflated.

Still, “there’s a lot of trees and large vegetation,” Parks said from the scene, and Geller said the balloon “flew away very quickly and went very high” before it erupted mid-air.

“The fire increases the heat and that makes the balloon rise rather rapidly,” Geller said.

Witnesses said the pilot “did everything he could in his power to save his passengers lives and his own,” Geller said. “Unfortunately, this was a very rapid event — and then of course there was the explosion.”

Witnesses also described seeing at least one person falling from the balloon, but it’s unclear whether that person jumped or fell, Geller said. “We may actually never know.”

The skies were overcast Friday night, and officials don’t believe weather was a factor. The Virginia State Police, Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are each conducting investigations into the cause of the crash.

The Mid-Atlantic Balloon Festival was cancelled, organizers said in a statement. "The Meadow Event Park staff is devastated. It’s a shocking situation for everyone."
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Not FFX no care

DMV God Wrote:
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> Not FFX no care

Me DMV God no make good sentences.
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I wonder how many decades until humans stop putting together 100 man search parties for fuckers who decided to hop in a huge balloon made out of plastic and wood and powered by a large blazing fire.

and this has what to do with ffx co?

Flight 370 hit it

who gives a crap Wrote:
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> and this has what to do with ffx co?

Nothing other than it amuses us. If you don't like it go back to fucking off. :)

One of the women that died was a hottie. http://wtvr.com/2014/05/10/hot-air-balloon-victims-on-ur-womens-basketball-staff/

What I don't understand is, if they hit power links (like this photo seems to show) then why did they keep ascending? Why not release the air and land? Instead the headed up into the sky.
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smoking hottie Wrote:
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> One of the women that died was a hottie.
> http://wtvr.com/2014/05/10/hot-air-balloon-victims
> -on-ur-womens-basketball-staff/
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Was looking forward to the balloon festival, but this tragedy burst my bubble.

I think the OP is full of HOT AIR.

Mr. A-Hole Wrote:
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> I think the OP is full of HOT AIR.


This one's already been done, loser. You're a total failure. Go die

Looking forward to many kind and sensitive tributes to the victims here at FFXU.

Memorial Tributes Wrote:
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> Looking forward to many kind and sensitive
> tributes to the victims here at FFXU.

Ah, don't be that way. Now does anyone know where the "BBQ" is? Anyone want a breast or a thigh?

I'd love to see that insurance claim.

This story really burns me up.

They found the last dead balloon chick. The two URI chicks jumped to their deaths. The balloonist apparently went down with the ship.

Les Nessman Wrote:
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> They found the last dead balloon chick. The two
> URI chicks jumped to their deaths. The balloonist
> apparently went down with the ship.


Third Body Found After Hot Air Balloon Accidentadvertisement
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/hot-air-balloon-accident/third-body-found-after-hot-air-balloon-accident-n102576

Crews searching for three victims of a hot air balloon explosion in Virginia found the last body Sunday morning, officials said.

Two victims' bodies were found in a heavily wooded area of Caroline County on Saturday. Recovery teams fanned out again at 6 a.m. Sunday to search for the last person missing.

The balloon hit a utility line and caught fire during a festival Friday night.

On Sunday, more than 100 personnel from multiple agencies scoured an area 3 miles long and a quarter-mile wide and discovered the third body at 11 a.m., said state police spokeswoman Corinne Geller.

The body was about 100 yards from where the second body was discovered Saturday afternoon, the statement said. The first and second bodies were about 1,500 yards apart, Geller said during a news conference on Saturday.

"Now that the male pilot and two female passengers have all been located, this concludes the large-scale search efforts of the operation," Sunday's statement said.

The state police and National Transportation Safety Board continued to search for the wreckage of the balloon and basket for investigative purposes, Geller said.

The University of Richmond confirmed Saturday that two "beloved" women's basketball team staffers, Ginny Doyle and Natalie Lewis were on the doomed balloon. The pilot, Daniel T. Kirk, was an experienced balloon operator with more than two decades of experience, his father told NBC News.
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If you are kin or otherwise close to the deceased and accidentally come across this thread full of trolls, please know there are also many compassionate people among the observers who followed the tragic news and were horrified and deeply saddened. And our prayers are with you.

Reports are the older woman had really ballooned up in weight recently......

Is it safe to say the two women were lesbians taking a romantic ride together?

Ellen D Wrote:
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> Is it safe to say the two women were lesbians
> taking a romantic ride together?




It was divine justice that the fire rained down from the heavens and destroyed this aerial Sodom & Gomorrah.

Who are these people involved in the SAR/recovery effort?



VA defense force? CAP? JROTC? They look really young.

And LOL on the tactical kid on the right with the LB vest and shemagh.

Top third of this thread is A+ funny.

Then the serious sallies got involved...

sar whozit? Wrote:
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> Who are these people involved in the SAR/recovery
> effort?

> VA defense force? CAP? JROTC? They look really
> young.
>
> And LOL on the tactical kid on the right with the
> LB vest and shemagh.



Maybe Commonwealth Challenge? It's a National Guard program where they take degenerate high school drop outs and try to make them decent citizens. They do a lot of paramilitary crap.

It's nothing to get all fired up about.

As if we needed more evidence that God hates fags.
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We need to ban power lines.

How many more must die before we ban balloons, power lines, and lesbians?

Some will die in hot pursuit in firey hot-air balloon crashes...

Butthole surferr Wrote:
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> Some will die in hot pursuit in firey hot-air
> balloon crashes...


Marky got with Sharon, Sharon got Sherice,
Now she's sharin' Sharon's outlook on the topic of disease.

Another Mikey took a knife while arguing in traffic,
Flipper died a natural death he caught a nasty virus.

These degenerates' lives should not be celebrated. Think how much they contributed to global warming with their folly!

Coaches, pilot remembered after balloon crash
http://www.wtop.com/41/3620463/Coaches-pilot-remembered-after-balloon-crash

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- The two University of Richmond basketball coaches killed in a hot-air balloon crash were a beloved long-time assistant who was part of one of the most revered moments in the program's history, and a woman who was hardly out of college and always cheerful and willing to help.

The pilot, Daniel T. Kirk, was also killed when the balloon drifted into a power line and burst into flames Friday. He had 20 years of flying experience and was affectionately known as "Capt. Kirk."

At the university's graduation Sunday, a moment of silence was held for the coaches -- director of basketball operations Natalie Lewis and associate head coach Ginny Doyle.

As a senior for the Spiders, Doyle set an NCAA record -- for men or women -- by making 66 consecutive free throws, an accomplishment that earned her dubious recognition from CBS college basketball analyst Billy Packer.

Packer, an 81.9 percent free-throw shooter at Wake Forest, scoffed at the record on air and noted that women use a slightly smaller ball, which in his mind made it less impressive.

Hearing that Packer was going to be in Richmond on another matter, the school invited him to come shoot against Doyle, and about 1,200 fans watched the duel at the Robins Center on Feb. 2, 1992.

It was no contest: Doyle, using a men's ball, made 20 of 20, with only two of them touching the rim. Packer, to the delight of the crowd, missed eight of his 20 attempts.

Her record has since been broken, but years later her foul shooting, as well as her love of the game and her players, remained on display, according to Robert Fish, a Richmond alum who also has called women's games on radio.

Doyle, 44, was hired by Bob Foley at Richmond in 1999 and stayed on through a couple of coaching changes.

Lewis was a four-year letter-winner in swimming who just completed her second season with the basketball program. Her job required organization skills as she made travel, hotel and bus arrangements for the team, planned for meals and handled day-to-day basketball business.

In the grind of a season, broadcaster Matt Smith said, she was a shining light, too.

"Sometimes when you work in sports, coaches can be so high strung and so focused on the next game or what's going on that you feel almost uncomfortable when you go into the office, but her being the first one that you would see, she always had a smile on her face," Smith said.

The University of Richmond on Monday released statements from the women's families expressing thanks for the support they've received.

"Natalie loved people. She was our constant source of happiness and joy," Lewis' family said in the statement. "She used genuine words and selfless actions to gently help others be more successful and more fulfilled."

Doyle's family recalled Ginny as a "daughter, sister, aunt, cousin, niece, athlete, teammate, coach, teacher, colleague, friend and storyteller" who "touched the lives of many and lived life to the fullest."

Kirk, of Delaware, was known by fellow pilots as "Capt. Kirk," the hammy commander of the USS Enterprise on the TV series "Star Trek."

Steve Hoffmann, who said he taught Kirk to fly and built the balloon he was piloting, called him "one of the nicest guys in the world" and a consummate professional.

"He was not a hot dog, not a risk taker," Hoffmann said. "It's so unbelievable that everyone's in shock."

The balloon was among 13 that lifted off Friday on a preview night for the Mid-Atlantic Balloon Festival when it drifted into a power line, burst into flames and fell into a heavily wooded area about 25 miles north of Richmond.

On the ground, "it was complete silence," spectator Nancy Johnson said. "There were people praying. It was horrible."

State police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said another pilot interviewed by investigators described how the pilot tried to open vents to release extra-hot air in an attempt to keep the balloon from rising faster.

"Based on witness accounts, he did everything he could to try to save the passengers' lives," Geller said.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.

This combination made with photos provided by the University of Richmond shows associate head coach Ginny Doyle, left, and director of basketball operations Natalie Lewis. Doyle and Lewis were two of the three people aboard a hot air balloon that drifted into a power line, burst into flames and crashed on Friday, May 9, 2014, in Virginia. Investigators say their remains were found about a mile apart in dense woods. (AP Photo/University of Richmond,
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