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The pilot of a hot air balloon died after being trapped under the basket and falling to the ground near the New Hampshire-Vermont border, authorities said Thursday.
Late Thursday afternoon, the pilot and four passengers took off from Post Mills Airport in Thetford, Vermont, according to Vermont State Police. At one point, the balloon began to descend and briefly touched the ground, causing the basket to tip over and a passenger to fall.
“During this streak, the pilot became entangled in the equipment attached to the balloon during its ascent and found himself trapped under the basket, where he ultimately fell to the ground from a height,” said the police. It was not known how far he had fallen from the basket.
The pilot, whom authorities have not identified, landed in a field off Waits River Road in Vermont and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The hot air balloon continued to travel north for about 1.5 miles before getting stuck in a grove of trees in Piermont, New Hampshire. The three remaining passengers in the basket were able to descend to safety, state police said.
None of the four passengers was injured in the crash.
The Burlington Chief Medical Examiner’s Office will perform an autopsy to determine the cause and mode of death.
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