New Mexico hot air balloon crash death toll rises to 5, former cop among those dead

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Five people died in Albuquerque, New Mexico on Saturday morning when a hot air balloon crashed into a power line, cutting off the envelope and sending the basket cascading to the ground. 

Four victims died at the scene and another individual was transported to a local hospital in critical but unstable condition, where he was pronounced dead around 3:00 p.m., Albuquerque police said. All of the deceased were middle-aged. 

Among the victims were former Albuquerque Police Department officer 59-year-old Martin Martinez and his wife, 62-year-old Mary Martinez. The couple's son currently works as a prison transport officer in Albuquerque. 

The three other victims have not been identified yet as authorities work to notify next of kin. 

A hot-air balloon envelope falls from the sky near Unser and Central SW in Albuquerque, N.M., Saturday, June 26, 2021. Multiple people were killed in the crash. (Adolphe Pierre-Louis/The Albuquerque Journal via AP)

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"If you have ballooned, there are always things that can happen, whether it's winds, whether it's equipment," Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller said at a press conference Saturday afternoon. "It's something that our pilots always train for, but it's always something that, it can inherently sometimes occur."

The basket of a hot air balloon which crashed lies on the pavement in Albuquerque, N.M., Saturday, June 26, 2021. Police said the five occupants died after it crashed on the busy street. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton)

Albuquerque police chief Harold Medina said that he had worked with Martinez when he first joined the force. 

"There were officers on the scene who I know worked with this individual during the course of their career," Medina said. "We did have to send a number of officers home because they were a little bit disturbed from what had occurred and it took its toll on them."

The envelope of the hot air balloon landed in an Albuquerque resident's yard.  (Austin Council via Storyful)

The hot air balloon's basket crashed down near a busy intersection in the northwestern portion of the city. 

"There were a number of citizens, residents of Albuquerque who ran into a very difficult scene, including an individual with a fire extinguisher, and they just tried to do what they could," Keller said. 

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The National Transportation Safety Board is sending two officials to investigate the scene. The Federal Aviation Administration will also be involved in the investigation, police said. 

The accident knocked out power in the area, affecting more than 13,000 customers, KOB 4 reported. It was restored later in the morning.