Image: Hot air balloon taking off (Abd. Halim Hadi / Shutterstock.com)
At least 16 people were feared dead when a hot air balloon caught fire and crashed in a pasture near the central Texas city of Lockhart on Saturday, according to a local sheriff.
"It does not appear at this time that there were any survivors of the crash," Caldwell County Sheriff Daniel Law said in a statement, according to his office.
The sheriff's office said it was working to determine the identities of those aboard the balloon.
The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed the crash about 30 miles (50 km) south of Austin and did not offer any information on fatalities. The agency said at least 16 people were on board the balloon.
(Reporting by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Richard Balmforth and Lisa Von Ahn)
