Hot-air balloon struck power line before fiery crash, NTSB says
By Lauren Caruba, Collin Eaton, and Andrea Zelinski
Updated 9:08 am, Monday, August 1, 2016
Photo: Jessalyn Tamez, AP
MAXWELL — At least three Houston-area residents were among the 16 people killed in the deadliest hot-air balloon crash in U.S. history, family and friends confirmed Sunday, as federal officials released new details about the Central Texas disaster.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which has launched an investigation into the accident, confirmed Sunday evening that the hot-air balloon had hit high-tension power lines before crashing into a pasture.
"There is evidence that some component of the balloon hit the wires — not the tower," said NTSB member Robert Sumwalt.
Authorities had not released the names of the victims as of Sunday evening. Caldwell County Justice of the Peace Matt Kiely told reporters near the site of the fiery crash that dental records will have to be used to identify the passengers killed when the red-white-and-blue balloon with a yellow smiley face plummeted to the ground near Lockhart, about 30 miles south of Austin.
Friends and family members of some of the victims, including a married couple and their friend who lived in the Houston area, have already begun grieving over the tragedy on social media sites such as Facebook. So far, at least seven crash victims, including the pilot, have been identified by name in this manner.
Joe Owens, 43, and his wife, Tresa, who were married for 17 years and lived on a quiet cul-de-sac in Brookshire, near Katy, were among those killed in the crash, said his sister, Angie Nadolny, of Mattoon, Ill.
Nadolny had not received official notification of the couple's death from authorities. But shortly before the crash, her brother posted a photo on Facebook about going up in the balloon.
Joe, who worked as a butcher at H-E-B, and Tresa, a caregiver at Tiger Land Child Care in Katy, had recently celebrated their anniversary.
"He was a very warm, caring person," Nadolny said of her brother. "He helped anybody he could. He's just a good-hearted, fun-loving man."
Holly Smith Huckabee of Katy also apparently was killed, according to numerous online tributes by friends and family members. Huckabee appeared to have been friends with the Owenses, according to social media profiles.
Such a tragedy. Thoughts and prayers with Matt and Sunday's families and those affected by yesterday's crash. https://t.co/IdJBWWCKMO— Ty C. Hodges, CFP® (@tycolby) July 31, 2016
Many wrote of Huckabee's faith, love for her family and positive personality. One man, a singer, knew Huckabee and the Owenses.
"They were such wonderful people," Reuben Rivera wrote on Facebook. "Holly, Joe and Tresa will be sorely missed. My heart and prayers goes out to both families as they go through this."
The harrowing episode began around 7 a.m. on Saturday when a hot-air balloon carried pilot Alfred G. "Skip" Nichols and 15 passengers 8 miles away from Fentress Texas Airpark and apparently hit a power line before it plummeted into a pasture.
The site of the crash is near a row of high-capacity transmission lines owned by the Lower Colorado River Authority Transmission Services Corp., according to the Austin American-Statesman.
Gathering evidence
No one survived. The balloon was found nearly a mile away from the basket that had carried the passengers. NTSB investigators from Washington hit the ground in Central Texas on Sunday morning to examine the wreckage and gather evidence.
"Our mission — we're here to find out what happened so we keep it from happening again," Sumwalt said.
The Federal Aviation Administration's Lynn Lunsford said through email that the organization is participating in the NTSB-led investigation.
The FAA previously had rejected NTSB calls for further regulation of hot-air balloons, citing the low amount of balloon activity.
Over the past five years, hot-air balloons have crashed 60 times across the nation, with five resulting in seven deaths, according to the NTSB.
Sumwalt said a high-tension power line was tripped at 7:42 a.m. Saturday and that a call to 911 followed a minute later, according to the Associated Press.
Investigators have collected 14 electronic devices, including smartphones and cameras, from the scene. They also have said they'll look into the weather as well as the balloon's maintenance records, the pilot and the company that operated the hot-air balloon, Heart of Texas Hot Air Balloon Rides, which operates in Houston, Austin and San Antonio. The balloon itself was manufactured in the Czech Republic.
The operation does not appear to be registered with the state of Texas. The Better Business Bureau gave the company a D+ rating and said five of six complaints it had received involved "problems with product/service," online records show.
Nichols previously had operated a hot-air balloon company in St. Louis County, Mo., and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported in 2008 that the Better Business Bureau there had warned customers about doing business with Nichols, the AP reported Sunday. The news service also quoted a Missouri police officer who asked not to be identified as saying Nichols had been arrested in 2000 on a felony driving-while-intoxicated charge and pleaded guilty to misdemeanor DWI in 2002.
In a statement on the company's voice mail, Heart of Texas said it had canceled all of its flights "for the foreseeable future" after the death of its owner and chief pilot, Nichols. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of those who passed away with Skip," the company said.
'A great pilot'
Nichols' roommate, Alan Lirette, who also works for the company, told AP that he helped launch the balloon on Saturday. Federal officials said Nichols had communicated with a ground crew with a cellphone as he navigated using his iPad.
"That's the only thing I want to talk about, is that he's a great pilot," Lirette said. "There's going to be all kinds of reports out in the press, and I want a positive image there, too."
Federal officials planned another briefing Saturday but hadn't said when they'll release the victims' names.
Two others who apparently died were Lorilee Brabson and her adult daughter, a close friend wrote on Facebook.
"Lorilee was always an excellent example of loving and kindness to all," Britney Reeves Hedin wrote. "She was sincere and so welcoming."
Brabson's daughter had a young daughter of her own, Hedin wrote, adding that her heart is "completely broken" for the family. A GoFundMe page said the daughter, Paige, was a restaurant worker and was raising an 11-month-old child when she was killed in the crash.
Matt and Sunday Rowan, both 34 and of San Antonio, were also victims of the crash, the San Antonio Express-News reported. The couple were married in February. Matt Rowan had recently been promoted to chief of clinical trials for burns and trauma at Brooke Army Medical Center's Institute of Surgical Research in San Antonio, the newspaper reported.
Sunday Rowan, whose maiden name was Stewart, worked at a Crazy 8 clothing store and had a young son.
Near the crash scene, grieving families gathered at a community center outside Ebenezer Lutheran Church on Sunday.
Scott Stephens, the congregation's leader, opened up the morning's service saying that answers to Saturday's tragedy will be difficult to find. Said Stephens, "It's not one of those things you look up in the book."
San Antonio Express-News reporter Rye Druzin and the Associated Press contributed to this report.