Hot-Air Balloon Crash, Egypt [PHOTO]: 19 Tourists Killed After Hot-Air Balloon Catches Fire and Plummets 1,000 Feet

According to Egyptian officials, 19 people have died after a hot-air balloon crashed right outside of Luxor, Egypt, after plummeting 1,000 feet. The balloon was carrying 20 foreign tourists including from Chinese, Japanese, Hungarian, French and British citizens. This crash reportedly happened as a result from a gas explosion according to Ahmed Aboud, a spokesman for balloon flight companies in the area.

18 dead bodies scattered across the field surrounding the remnants of the balloon had been recovered from the crash site, according to an unofficial report. 2 British tourists and the Egyptian pilot had survived the crash and were taken to the hospital, 2 of which had initially jumped from the balloon before the basket hit the ground. 1 of the surviving tourists succumbed to his or her injuries in the hospital, making the death toll 19. Atsushi Imaeda, the head of the Egypt branch of Japan Travel Bureau, confirmed that 4 of the crash victims were Japanese. Hong Kong travel agency Kuoni announced that there was a "very big chance" that 9 of the dead were Tourists from Hong Kong and that relatives are planning to fly to Cairo today. British tour operator Thomas Cook confirmed the deaths of 2 British tourists. Luxor province's governor, Ezzrat Saad, enforced an immediate ban on all hot-air balloon flights, while Egyptian Prime Minister Hesham Qandil has ordered an investigation.

Assistant manager of Luxor's Al Moudia Hotel, Konny Matthews, stated that she had heard a "boom" around 7 am. "It was a huge bang. It was a frightening bang, even though it was several kilometres away from the hotel," she said."Some of my employees said that their homes were shaking."

Hot-air balloon accidents in Egypt have been known to happen in the past but have mainly only lead to injuries. Since ballooning in this area of Egypt began back in 1989, "nothing on this scale" has ever happened. The closest incident could be when, in 2009, a reportedly overcrowded hot air-balloon crashed near Luxor, injuring 13 tourists.

Ever since the 2011 uprising that ended President Hosni Mubarak's reign and 2 years of political unrest, the tourism industry of Egypt has suffered a dramatic drop in tourists. Luxor and Aswan were considered the last places where tourists felt safe enough to visit. Given the country's reliance on tourism and its economic situation, this crash is sure to be bad news for the future of Egypt.