Texas balloon crash: ‘It went up like a fireball’

A hot air balloon burst into flames over central Texas on Saturday, killing all 16 people aboard, in one of the deadliest such accidents on record. It apparently struck power lines.

The Federal Aviation Administration said the fiery crash occurred at 7:40am (8.40am ET), near Lockhart, a town 50km south of Austin, the Texas capital.

The Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed the death toll.