Man Falls to Death From Balloon After Saving Others

A man who helped two people escape a burning basket at a hot air balloon festival in Mexico was killed when he became entangled in ropes as the apparatus left the ground. The accident occurred Sunday at the First Balloon Festival in Zacatecas, NBC News reports. Two people were injured, and two organizers of the event were detained after leaving the scene, the local attorney general's office said. After the balloon began ascending after breaking free, the 40-year-old victim dangled from it before falling to the ground, Riviera Maya News reports.

The festival was part of the 2025 Enrique Estrada Fair, per the Daily Beast. The municipal government said an experienced contractor had provided the balloons. Rodrigo Reyes Mugüerza, Zacatecas' secretary general, said the state prosecutor's office has been asked to conduct an investigation "to clarify the facts and disclose responsibilities," per NBC. (More hot air balloon stories.)