Hot Air Balloon Makes Emergency Landing in Rancho PQ

No one was hurt when a hot air balloon made an emergency landing Sunday evening near the Rancho Peñasquitos water tower, authorities said.The unplanned landing happened around 7:15 p.m. when the balloon for unknown reasons landed on the street at the 15000 block of Penasquitos Drive, San Diego Police Department (SDPD) Officer John Buttle said. SDFD Girl’s Camp Starts Amid Discrimination Controversy Joseph McGhee was having a barbecue with his friends when the balloon went down.”The wind shifted, I guess, and they kind of got caught in the mountains over here,” he said. Hot Start to the Weekend The balloon’s basket was stuck in the brush and started to tip over when the balloon started going up again, McGhee said.”Me and my friends ran down here and tried to anchor it until police and firefighters came to help,” he said. Remains of Marine Killed in Training Crash Arrives in San Diego There were 14 passengers and the operator on board when it landed, authorities said. People were kept on board for safety reasons until the balloon was fully deflated.”It took a good 10 minutes for it to deflate,” McGhee said. “Once it was deflated then it was pretty stable.”The deflated balloon was lying across traffic lanes and southbound Penasquitos Drive was closed for a time at Del Diablo Way, Buttle said.No one on board was injured, San Diego Fire-Rescue (SDFD) spokeswoman Monica Munoz said.The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will be notified of the incident, Buttle said.Police said there was plenty of fuel left and they don’t know why the balloon went down.The same balloon also made an emergency landing in Rancho Peñasquitos last year.Photo Credit: Courtesy Photo
Source: NBC San Diego