At least eight dead in hot air balloon accident in Brazil

At least eight people have died in a hot air balloon accident in southern Brazil, the governor of Santa Catarina state has said.

There were 21 people on board the balloon in the city of Praia Grande on Saturday morning, Jorginho Mello posted on X.

Thirteen people, including the pilot, survived and no one is missing, the state government press office reported.

Brazils National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac) said it was taking "all necessary steps to investigate the condition of the aircraft and the crew".

"According to the pilot, who is one of the survivors, a fire started inside the basket, so he started to lower the balloon, and when the balloon was very close to the ground he told people to jump," officer Tiago Luiz Lemos, from the Praia Grande police station, told reporters at the scene.

"They started to jump, but some people did not manage to. The flames started to grow and because of the weight, the balloon began to rise again.

"It later fell because of a loss of suspension."

The victims were two couples, a mother and daughter, an ophthalmologist, and a figure skater.

The survivors were taken to nearby hospitals.

Balloon tour company Sobrevoar Serviços Turísticos, which operated the flight, has now suspended its activities indefinitely.

It said it had complied with all regulations set by Anac and had had no prior history of accidents.

"Unfortunately, even with all necessary precautions and the efforts of our experienced pilot - who followed all recommended procedures and tried to save everyone on board - we are now faced with the pain caused by this tragedy," the company added.

In a video also posted on X, Mello, who is on an official mission in China, said he had sent "the entire state structure" to "rescue, help and comfort the families" and was continuing to monitor the situation.

"We are in mourning, what happened is a tragedy," he added.

"We will investigate why this happened. But the important thing now is to do everything possible to reach out to the people and the families."

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva posted on X expressing his "solidarity with the families of the victims".

He said he had placed "the federal government at the disposal of the victims" and that "state and municipal forces " were working on the rescue and care of the survivors.

Praia Grande, in southern Santa Catarina, is a popular tourist destination known for its ballooning activities.

Additional reporting by Danai Nesta Kupemba, Andre Biernath and Sofia Ferreira Santos