11 People Killed In New Zealand Ballooning Tragedy

Eleven people, including the pilot, have been killed in a hot air balloon crash in the Wairarapa.

Pilot Lance Hopping, CEO of Ballooning New Zealand Ltd, and five couples from the Wellington region were killed when their balloon (a Cameron A 210 named "Mr Big" reg. number ZK-XXF) burst into flames and became caught up in powerlines near Carterton this morning, cutting power to the town for some hours.

This is New Zealand's largest air disaster since the death of nine people, including tourists, in a light plane crash at Fox Glacier on 4 Sept 2010. That event went largely unnoticed outside of New Zealand because it happened on the same day as the first Christchurch earthquake. For more read Fox Glacier air crash.

Few people know that New Zealand's first fatal air accident (1899)  involved a balloon which landed in the sea, drowning the pilot.

Another similar tragedy happened in 1995, when a balloon belonging to a company called Balloon Adventures ditched in the sea off Waimairi Beach in Christchurch. Three tourists drowned.

It is not known whether any foreign nationals were involved in today's crash, nor have any names been released other than the pilot's.

The company, Hastings based Early Morning Balloons ltd (Facebook page) is said to be involved and is cooperating with civil aviation investigators. It has issued a statement expressing their condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims.

According to the company's website it charges $350 per person for its Wairarapa flights which take off from behind the paua shop on Kent Street, Clareville, a street criss-crossed with overhead powerlines.

A sequence of photographs taken by local photographer Geoff Walker just days ago shows the balloon seemingly very close to overhead power lines, and one news report stated he was on the ground taking photos as the balloon burst into flames and crashed.

Those photographs are likely to form an important part of the investigation into what went wrong with ZK-XXF.

Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the deceased and with the witnesses to the crash who must've been traumatised by what they've seen.

In a police statement

"Wairarapa Area Commander Inspector Brent Register says Police began receiving reports from eye witnesses about 7:25am, where they reported a hot air balloon in distress.
"It appears the hot air balloon operated by Early Morning Balloons left Kent Street, Carterton (behind The Paua Factory), between 6:40am and 6:45am."
He says after a 45-minute flight, the balloon was to land in a paddock in Somerset Road, Carterton. As the balloon was preparing to land, it hit wires on a power line, causing sparking in the basket.
"At this point, two of the 11 people onboard, believed to be a male and a female, appear to have jumped from the basket."
Inspector Register says the balloon then made a sharp ascent, a fire ignited on board and the balloon plummeted into a paddock approx 200 metres away on Somerset Road.
All 11 people on board, including the pilot and five couples from the wider Wellington region, were killed in the crash.
"We are continuing to work with our partner agencies, which include the Coroner's office, the Civil Aviation Authority, the Transport Accident and Investigation Commission, Dept of Labour, NZ Fire Service and Victim Support."
Inspector Register says a thorough investigation is being conducted to ascertain the cause of the tragedy..."

Video of crash site

Adventure tourism, deaths and regulation
New Zealand has a shocking safety record for some of its tourism activities, something we've often blogged about.

The CAA recently drafted new rules to force all aviation adventure tourism activities, including hot air balloons, microlights, warbirds, and tandem hang gliders and paragliders to hold air operator certificate.

The CAA safeguards civil aviation in New Zealand and has control over which operators can fly passengers and authority to make sure they meet safety standards.
Under Part 115 of the new civil aviation rules, all adventure aviation operators must hold an Operator Certificate.

"For those currently operating under Parts 101, 103, 104, 105, and 106, here are the transition timeframes for gaining a Part 115 Operator Certificate:

• Hot air balloon, hang glider, paraglider, tandem parachute, and parachute drop aircraft operators must be certificated by 1 May 2012.
• Microlight aircraft operations must be certificated by 1 Nov 2012.
• Glider operations must be certificated by 1 May 2013.

Those currently conducting an adventure aviation operation under a Part 119 AOC may continue to do so until the expiry of that certificate, or 10 November 2012, whichever comes first."

Despite several high profile deaths and injuries, a number of prosecutions and the introduction of a auditing and registration system for all tourism operators, we're saddened to learn that these tragedies are still occurring.

An all encompassing set of Adventure tourism regulations finally were enacted in October 2011, three and a half years after the drowning  death of British tourist Emily Jordan sparked a review of the adventure tourism industry within NZ.

Incredibly there is a further delay of three years until all 1,500 adventure tourism businesses within New Zealand must be registered and in possession of a safety audit certificate.

We don't know if Early Morning Balloons ltd was registered or had ever received a safety audit.
More more about adventure tourism safety in NZ read posts tagged accordingly, or our stats and facts page

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Vicious Sex Attack on Child At NZ Campsite

(For an update to this story read Belgian Girl’s Rapist Has “Gang Connections” – “Killah”)


We’re shocked to hear that yet another tourist has been seriously assaulted in a campervan in New Zealand.

What makes this particular crime all the more disgusting is that this time it was a five year old Belgian tourist that was severely beaten and subjected to a vicious sexual attack after being bashed unconscious. A heinous and contemptible crime perpetrated against a defenseless child.

One of the police officers working on the case said it was the worst he’d seen

“It is the worst attack I have seen in my 28 years of police service.
“It was a vicious attack on a defenceless five-year-old girl. You don’t get too many offences which are too much worse than this.”

Our thoughts are with the girl’s family, who are said to be on dream holiday of a lifetime from Europe, and we wish her a full and speedy recovery from her ordeal.

The British press is bound to draw comparisons to the abduction of 3 year old Madeleine McCann, whose parents left her sleeping in a holiday resort in Portugal.

The family arrived at Club Habitat on Ohuanga Road, Turangi yesterday (street view below) and the assault took place last night between 10.10 and 10.40 whilst the child’s parents were just metres away in an amenity block. The girl and her three year old brother were left alone and sleeping in the van at the time.

Police are not releasing details of the family or their country of origin but they did tell reporters that there had been a burglary at the camp the previous night.


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Unfortunately, even though New Zealand strives to maintain has a safe image abroad there have been a significant number of assaults, rapes  and robberies of campervan tourists in the last few years. Sadly it was just a matter of time until a child was attacked.


Crime against foreign nationals in New Zealand is something that we write about regularly, take a look at our blogs tagged campervan to see numerous other incidents. Sadly it seems that the message still isn’t getting out about New Zealand and its high crime rates and violence against tourists.

High Rates of Child Abuse Deaths

Many tourists fail to realise that far from being safe for children, New Zealand is ranked joint third in the world by UNICEF for the highest number of  child maltreatment deaths (1.2 per 100,000 children) only the US and Mexico have more  See our Facts and stats pages (above) for more information.

The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office has issued the following advice for travellers to New Zealand. Perhaps it is time for them to be more specific about the types of violent crime and follow the lead of the Dutch government after a honeymooning couples were raped at a campsites in Tuatapere and Haruru Falls, so that people may be better informed.

Safety and Security – Crime

Street crimes occur in major urban areas. Reports of thefts from unattended vehicles, especially hire cars/camper vans in major tourist areas (e.g. the Coromandel Peninsula, Rotorua and Queenstown) have increased. There has also been an increase in the number of thefts from hotel rooms in some tourist areas. Do not leave possessions in unattended vehicles even if out of sight in a locked boot. Do not leave valuables in hotel rooms, but use safe boxes when available. Keep passports, travellers’ cheques, credit cards, etc separate. See our Victims of Crime Abroad page.

A NZ police media statement gave the following information about the Club Habitat assault

Child seriously assaulted at holiday park
Thursday, 22 December 2011, 1:19 pm
Press Release: New Zealand Police
Child seriously assaulted at holiday park
A five-year-old girl is in a serious but stable condition in hospital after being attacked last night at a holiday park in Turangi.
The girl is currently touring New Zealand with her parents and brother in a hired ute and caravan. Yesterday afternoon they arrived in Turangi and booked into Club Habitat on Ohuanga Road, Turangi.
Last night the girl’s father was in the amenity block just metres away from the caravan. At approximately 10.10pm the mother also walked across to the amenity block leaving the two children asleep inside the caravan.
When she returned at approximately 10.40pm she found the caravan door locked and through the window saw a man inside.
She ran to get her husband and when they returned the caravan door was open, the man was gone and their daughter was lying seriously injured in her bed.
She has serious injuries mainly to her head and face and has undergone surgery at Waikato Hospital.
An investigation is underway, headed by Detective Inspector Mark Loper. ESR are in Turangi carrying out a full scene examination. Officers from Waikato are currently assisting with interviews with the parents.
Detective Inspector Mark Loper said: “This is a vicious attack, and the fact that it is on a five-year-old tourist just days before Christmas makes it all the more appalling. It is vital that anyone who has the smallest piece of information that might help this investigation comes forward as soon as possible.”
The family are visiting from Europe. Police will not be more specific at this stage as the family need some time to notify relatives back home before any further detail is released.

Other Recent Turangi Crime Stories

Hunter who killed camping teacher to get early release – man hunting illegally at night, shot schoolteacher in head at campsite. He is released after serving just 11 months in prison.
Police seek thugs – elderly man beaten by burglars a few weeks ago
Man accused of attacking Turangi policeman in court -Motorist punched police officer unconscious in an assault on SH 1
Smuggler jail guard ‘felt sorry’ for inmate – prison warder smuggled drugs in to Tongariro-Rangipo Prison prison

Other Tourist Attacks in New Zealand


Chilean Tourist Robbed, Loses Life’s Work
Te Anau Troubled By Tourist Attacks
Honeymoon Couple Lose Precious Photos, No ‘Gold Medal’
Czech Tourist, Jan Fakotor, Stabbed In Motueka
English tourist mugged in Gisborne
Chilean tourist punched, robbed in Nelson
A group of students that were beaten and robbed whilst on a treasure hunt at the Hundertwasser toilets in Kawakawa, Northland
A series of random, unprovoked attacks in Queenstown
Previous robbery of British tourists at Kerosene Creek
Tourists robbed at Kerosene Creek
Three French tourists beaten and robbed in their campervan in Mangamuka, Northland - police have yet to resolve this crime

A family of Swiss tourists that were assaulted and racially abused in Kaitaia, Northland
Anke Kuballa and Marc Busch from Germany who were robbed in Whangarei, Northland
A family of five robbed at the roadside whilst camping in their van at Oturere Stream, 25km south of Turangi
Two German tourists attacked in Paihia, Northland
Two American tourists were robbed at Shipwreck Bay in Northland whilst sandboarding

Asian woman, (probably Japanese) age 22, raped in her room by 2 teenagers in a home invasion in Opotiki, Northland

Three Chinese tourists attacked and robbed at Te paki, 90 Mile Beach, Northland, by two men they’d stopped to help
French tourist Anthony Cressend, beaten and robbed at campsite in Ahipara, Northland
Two Australian tourists robbed at knifepoint for their holiday money in Te Puke, SE of Tauranga.
Japanese tourist age 23 (female) kidnapped, robbed and assaulted in Rotorua by four men
French tourist (male) raped at gunpoint near Opotiki,

American peace corp twins Adam and Alex Rahmlow, 21 were robbed of all their possessions by a man they tried to help in Amberley, Christchurch.
Dutch couple raped and robbed on a campsite in Tuatapere, NW of Invercargill, whilst on their honeymoon. (Dutch govt. issued a travel warning about NZ)
Two Koreans were attacked and robbed of their possession which included a laptop computer by a man claiming to be a gang member in Blenheim.
British tourist worker sexually assaulted near Hururu Falls, Northland when she was dragged off a walking track.
Canadian tourist Jeremie Kawerninski, kidnapped, assaulted and robbed in Lower Hutt, Wellington
Dutch couple robbed and sexually attacked Haruru Falls, Northland whilst on honeymoon.
Two British women robbed and raped in their campervan at Tokomaru Bay, north of Gisborne.
Japanese tourist subjected to a prolonged and brutal sex attack in a communal area of a backpacker’s hostel in Turangi, Taupo.
Scottish woman Karen Aim brutally murdered by a youth in Taupo.
German woman Birgit Brauer murdered near New Plymouth.
Korean man Jae Hyeon Kim decapitated with a spade by white supremacist.
Japanese tourist robbed at gunpoint in Oamaru.
Irish cycle tourist Paul Mack bashed, robbed and urinated on throughout his NZ tour.
6 English and Danish tourists attacked and stabbed in Cashel Mall, Christchurch for having “foreign accents.”
Irish man Robby O’Brien beaten up in Westport.
Russian couple Denis Khotchenko and Lera Nesterova beaten and robbed in Milford, Auckland
English woman knifed and sexually assaulted in a toilet block at an A1 motor camp in Kaikoura
American campers Patrick Dykstra and Kelsey McGinley beaten and robbed at Whangarei Falls, Northland.
Australian tourist sexually assaulted on a street in broad daylight in Nelson.
Australian tourist subjected to a sex attack by Maia Crawford Rongonui whilst walking home to a backpackers in Christchurch.
Canadian tourist left with a fractured skull outside Silver Fern backpackers in Taupo.
Dutch tourist beaten and robbed at Lake Rotorua.
British man Paul Speakman and his young son beaten and robbed in a campervan at Athenree Gorge, Katikati.
Chinese woman attacked for speaking Chinese on a train approaching Petone.
Scottish visitor Stuart Martin who was left in a coma and with a boot print on his face after a street bashing in Taradale, Christchurch.

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Murder Of British Woman Jacqueline Blackbourn, Trial Underway

The trial of the man accused of the murder and rape of British immigrant, Jacqueline Blackbourn, got underway at Auckland Crown Court today. The man has already pleaded guilty to a charge of arson.
The Crown said in its opening statement that Jacqueline had been raped, strangled and stabbed to death before being set alight in her Glenfield home.

A knife had been plunged into her chest with such force that it when through her sternum. Siobhan Buckley told the court that Jacqueline's boyfriend could not accept the fact that their two year relationship was over and was "relentless in his attempts" to get her back.

A former girlfriend of the accused was in tears when she told about three incidents in which

"household items were smashed and she was physically or verbally assaulted.
After one dinner party she said the accused went "absolutely crazy", dragging her down the hallway before pushing her up against the kitchen bench and putting his hands around her throat.
"I thought he was going to kill me for sure. I was terrified really," she said.
Under cross-examination, the woman admitted that she hadn't called police or sought medical attention after the incidents.
"I'd say nine out of 10 women who get beat don't go to police," she told the court..." source

Ms Blackbourn was found in her burning house in Glenfield, North Shore in June 2010. At the time of the accused man's  arrest, news reports said a 28 year old man had appeared in court and

Police said that Ms Blackbourn, 43, suffered a violent death inside the View Road, Glenfield, house on the night of June 26. Police said the man, who has interim name suppression, was also charged with historical offences that related to another female complainant.  These included injuring with intent to injure, assault with intent to injure, assault with a weapon and intentional damage...
...Ms Blackbourn came to New Zealand from England 20 years ago.”

In our blog of 30 June 2010 we reported that the NZ Herald said that Jacqueline had recently split up with her partner, Steve Ellis. He was severely burned in the fire was found outside the property wearing only his underpants. Her former boyfriend, Karl Hawthorne, told reporters that Ms Blackbourn:

“worked in the accounts section of Harvey Norman at Wairau Park, was “the life of the party” and loved dancing, Mr Hawthorne said.
She missed her family, who were all overseas.
“She was really close to her mum,” he said. “There wouldn’t have been two days go by that she wasn’t in contact with her.”
Another friend, Margie Cardwell, described Ms Blackbourn as an “English rose”. “She was really feminine and girly, looked quite young for her age. She had a heart of gold.”
Ms Blackbourn’s brother, Tommaso Cerullo, yesterday left a heartfelt message for her on a social networking website.
“Rest in peace my darling sister. Love you and always will. You will never be forgotten in my heart or soul, miss you so much.
“To all the people that had the pleasure of having their heart lifted by her kindness and her smile, thank you for being there for her.”
Detective Senior Sergeant Kim Libby, of North Shore CIB, said police officers hoped to speak to Mr Ellis in the next couple of days.
His injuries were not life-threatening, he added.
They would continue combing the scene of the fire today. A post mortem examination has been carried out on Ms Blackbourn, but police have declined to reveal the cause of death, saying only that it was violent.”

Our deepest sympathies are again extended to Jacqueline’s family and friends for their terrible loss. Our thoughts are with you all in the difficult days that lie ahead during the trial.
Domestic Violence a problem in New Zealand
Far from being the safe haven it wishes to present to the world, life in New Zealand is a misery for hundreds of thousands of women, a third of them have been affected by domestic violence at some time during their lives.
New Zealand has an appalling record for domestic violence and some of the highest preventable child death stats in the developed world.  After a spike in referrals to Women's refuges after the shock of the All Black defeat in the 2007 Rugby World Cup, refuges were on standby for an influx if New Zealand lost again in 2011.
NZ’s appalling record for domestic violence is shamed by an international human rights group

"Police statistics show a 15% increase in the number of family violence incidents and offences in 2007-08, with more than 86,000 reports made. They say family violence affects a third of all women during their lifetime and that 45% of murders in New Zealand are family violence-related.

Meanwhile, a second report calling for an overhaul of systems to keep women and girls safe is being presented alongside the New York findings. The report, by a newly-formed local group called the Roundtable of Violence Against Women, says certain types of violence and victims are being overlooked. This includes prostitutes who come from countries known for trafficking, such as Korea, Thailand, Eastern Europe and the Philippines.

It also highlights the "serial abuse" of many immigrant women, saying both Women's Refuge and the Shakti Community Council have evidence that men are using women's residency status to exploit them and keep them in abusive relationships..." April 2009 source

For more read our blogs tagged violence against women.
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