Hot Air Balloon Crashes In Burlington, Struck By Train, 3 Injured

BURLINGTON, WI — Three adults were seriously injured when their hot air balloon came down and collided with a passing freight train in Burlington Wednesday evening, according to a news release from the City of Burlington Police Department.

Police were called around 8:15 p.m. with a report that the balloon was hit by a train near the 400 block of Calumet Street in Burlington, the news release said. All three people on the balloon had life-threatening injuries after the crash, and two were airlifted to Froedtert Hospital, police said.

Witnesses reported seeing the hot air balloon in distress and colliding with a Canadian National Train that was headed north, police said.

Richard Lapidus told WISN 12 he saw several balloons flying low in the area when the crash happened and the ensuing emergency response.

Another witness, Brian Oneill, told TMJ4 several bystanders helped after the balloon bounced off a building and collided with the train.

Details on what caused the crash were not immediately clear.

Fire departments from Burlington, Waterford, Rochester and Kansasville responded to the crash and helped the three people injured in the balloon, the police news release said.

Burlington police said they are investigating the crash alongside the National Traffic Safety Board, Federal Aviation Administration, Canadian National and Wisconsin State Patrol.

Police asked anyone with information on the crash to contact the Burlington Police Department's Detective Bureau at 262-342-1104 or rjones@burlington-wi.gov while referencing Burlington police report #22-5105.