The identity of the victim killed in a hot air balloon crash in Arizona over the weekend has been released by the Eloy Police Department.
At a news conference Monday, Eloy Mayor Micah Powell said 13 adults, including the pilot, four passengers and eight skydivers, were on board the balloon before it crashed into a clearing in a desert area 60 miles southeast of Phoenix. It was reported that
“The skydivers were able to escape from the balloon without incident and complete the skydiving incident, but something tragic happened and the balloon crashed to the ground,” police said in a statement. .
Mayor Powell reported that three passengers and the pilot were among those killed in the crash.
4 killed, 1 seriously injured in hot air balloon crash in Arizona desert
Eloy police released the name of the victim killed in a hot air balloon crash in Arizona on Sunday. (FOX10 Phoenix)
Powell said the crash occurred in the “world's largest drop zone” for skydivers.
Eloy Police Chief Byron Gwaltney identified the hot air balloon pilot as Cornelius van der Walt, 37, an Eloy resident and South African. The three passengers who died were identified as Chayton Wiecholek, 28, of Union City, Michigan. Caitlin Bartrom, 28, of Andrews, Indiana. and Atahan Kirikoto, 24, of Cupertino, California.
The seriously injured woman was identified by police as Valerie Stutterheima, 23, of Scottsdale, Arizona.
“At this time, the Eloy Police Department is actively cooperating with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the investigation of this incident,” the statement said.
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The NTSB is still investigating the cause of the hot air balloon crash that killed four people and seriously injured one. (FOX10 Phoenix)
Police added that the skydive was intentional and that all skydivers had successfully completed it before the problem with the hot air balloon became apparent.
Witnesses told police that in the final seconds of the crash, the balloon's material “was going straight up and down, and the impact was quite large,” Powell said at a news conference.
“We would like to express our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who lost their lives in this tragic incident, and our thoughts are with Mr. Stutterheim as he continues to receive treatment,” police said in a statement.
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FILE – The NTSB is investigating a hot air balloon crash that killed four people and seriously injured one in Arizona Sunday morning. (St. Petersburg)
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The accident occurred just before 8 a.m. on Sunday, January 14.
The NTSB said investigators arrived at the scene to document and examine the hot air balloon, adding that the balloon will be transported to a secure facility for further investigation.
The cause of the crash was not immediately known Monday.
