Australia man falls to his death from hot air balloon

A man died in Australia Monday after falling out of a hot air balloon traveling over the country’s second-largest city. 

The deceased, who has not been identified, plunged from the sky about 30 minutes into a hot air balloon journey that started in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. 

"My brother heard like a loud bang, almost like something like a large item falling in your house," a witness reportedly told 9News. "And it wasn’t until we heard all the sirens that we came out." 

The cause of the fall was not immediately clear, but police say they are not treating the death as suspicious. 

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A police officer walks past a trailer with a hot-air balloon basket on it after the discovery of a man's body at Yarra Bend Park in Melbourne, on Monday, March 18. (Diego Fedele/AAP Image via AP)

An investigation is now underway, with law enforcement speaking to the balloon’s pilot, other occupants and witnesses. 

The man’s body was found in a residential area that Victoria state police closed off to traffic.  

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Hot air balloons are seen flying over the Melbourne skyline in September 2023. Other balloons that were traveling in the area Monday reportedly landed following an incident in which a man fell to his death. (Vince Caligiuri/Getty Images)

The balloon he was traveling in landed safely in Yarra Bend Park, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The station added that other hot air balloons made landings at inner-city parks in the wake of the incident. 

The National Commercial Hot-Air Ballooning Industry and the Australian Ballooning Federation expressed condolences for the man's family and friends. 

An aerial view of the Melbourne taken from a hot air balloon in January 2022. (Matt Blyth/Getty Images)

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"Hot-air balloon baskets are designed with safety in mind, specifically to prevent passengers from falling out accidentally or from any accidental exit," the organizations said in a statement. "Passengers and the pilot are understandably traumatized by this tragedy and the operator is arranging psychological support and counseling for all affected." 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.