Nha Trang’s balloon wrecked due to high winds

A hot-air balloon that is used for tourism purpose in Nha Trang was wrecked when its envelope was torn from the mooring-mast in high winds accompanied by gusts.

A hot-air balloon that is used for tourism purpose at Hon Tam tourist site in the beachside city of Nha Trang was wrecked on Thursday afternoon when its envelope was torn from the mooring-mast in high winds accompanied by gusts.

The Hon Tam tourist site's employees repair the hot-air balloon that is badly wrecked in high winds on the afternoon of August 16, 2012.

The bad weather also toppled some trees around but luckily there were no human casualties.

Nguyen Thien Thanh, director of the Hon Tam Bien Nha Trang Joint Stock Company who owns the balloon, confirmed with Tuoi Tre News that they stopped serving balloon rides at the time of the incident.

But he added the air had not been let out of the balloon before that.

Thanh said they will have to send the balloon envelope to the US for repair.

The balloon flights were first offered at Hon Tam Island in February 2010 for VND190,000 (US$9.5) to provide tourists with a panoramic view of the coastal city.

The fares now have been reduced to VND100,000 (US$5) during the day and VND120,000 (US$6) in the evening for a 20 minute ride. It serves from 200 to 300 passengers per day.

The balloon, that was bought from France for EUR1.2 million (US$1.57 million) in 2008,  has a diameter of 22 meters and is covered by 46 pieces of colorful heat- and pressure-resistant plastic.

It contains approximately 6,000 cubic meters of Helium and natural gas. Its basket can hold up to 25 people at a height of 150 meters.