CFA photographer Keith Pakenham caught all the action as By Glen Atwell
A TV crew’s hot air balloon got a big break when it came off second best after it tangled with a dead gum tree near Endeavour Hills on Tuesday.
The passengers were filming for Channel Seven travel show Coxy’s Big Break.
The Global Ballooning craft had landed near the Dandenong wetlands on Heatherton Road but a freak gust of wind pushed the craft into the tree.
Global Ballooning pilot David Slockart said the landing was calm and gentle.
“The basket hit the ground without a problem, it was then pushed by a gust of wind towards the tree,” he said.
“Part of the balloon got tangled and ripped. It was not a crash.
“Hot air balloons are wind powered, we don’t have steering wheels, so we land the balloons when and where it is safe to, and that’s exactly what happened,” Mr Slockart said.
“Dead trees are unforgiving, if it had been a new tree with branches and leaves, the balloon would have survived.”
Dandenong firefighter Keith Pakenham was on the scene to lend a hand.
“Hallam CFA and a rescue crew from Dandenong CFA responded, but there were no people trapped or injured,” he said.
“Occupants from the balloon were quickly whisked away in a white stretch-Hummer.”
“The balloon was damaged as a tree branch penetrated through the liner.”
