CHINA/JAPAN: Hong Kong's chief executive Leung Chun-ying sends condolences to families of hot air balloon crash victims, and Japan urges Egypt to conduct a thorough investigation into the accident

Record ID: 1377113

  • Title: CHINA/JAPAN: Hong Kong's chief executive Leung Chun-ying sends condolences to families of hot air balloon crash victims, and Japan urges Egypt to conduct a thorough investigation into the accident
  • Date: 27th February 2013
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF PEOPLE WALKING (SOUNDBITE) (Cantonese) HOUSEWIFE, STELLA LAM, SAYING: "You can really never see an accident coming, especially when you travel abroad. You have to take your own risks, like when you join activities like white water rafting, accidents can happen. I'm not very surprised, but this is a tragedy." PEOPLE WALKING (SOUNDBITE) (Cantonese) AUDIO EQUIPMENT STORE WORKER, JASON YEE, SAYING: "Personally I've never been too keen to go to Egypt, but this has affected (my desire to travel to Egypt) to a certain extent." PEOPLE WALKING
  • Embargoed: 14th March 2013 21:16
  • Keywords:
  • Location: China
  • Country: China
  • Topics: Accidents
  • Reuters ID: LVA7ZAC9FZMQMZ134SWQ5ZF0HJSQ
  • Aspect Ratio: 4:3
  • Story Text: Hong Kong's chief executive Leung Chun-ying expressed his condolences to families of the hot air balloon crash victims on Tuesday (February 26), state television CCTV reported.
    At least 19 people, most of them Asian and European tourists, died on Tuesday when a hot air balloon caught fire and crashed near the ancient Egyptian town of Luxor after a mid-air gas explosion, officials said.

    "I feel very sad and want to send my deepest condolences to their families. The Hong Kong government and the Chinese embassy to Egypt will follow up closely on this incident," said Leung.
    The death of nine Hong Kong tourists at the hot air balloon explosion in Egypt made newspaper headlines in the former British colony on Wednesday (February 27).
    The balloon came down in farmland a few kilometers from the Valley of the Kings and pharaonic temples popular with tourists. Rescue workers gathered the dead from the field where the charred remains of the balloon, gas canisters and other pieces of wreckage landed.
    The other tourists hailed from Japan, France, Britain and Hungary. One Egyptian was also killed.
    Hong Kong residents said the accident was tragic.

    "You can really never see an accident coming, especially when you travel abroad. You have to take your own risk, like when you join activities like white water rafting, accidents can happen. I'm not very surprised, but this is a tragedy," said Stella Lam, a housewife.
    Others said the crash would further hinder them from travelling to Egypt.

    "Personally I've never been too keen to go to Egypt, but this affected (my desire to travel to Egypt) to a certain extent, yes, to a certain extent," said Jason Yee, who works at an audio equipment store.
    Japan said on Wednesday that it believed four Japanese had been aboard the crashed balloon and had sent embassy staff in Cairo to Luxor to identify the bodies.
    It also urged an investigation into the accident.

    "The government dispatched three embassy staff members to the site, who are now confirming the identities of the victims. The ambassador to Egypt, Okuda, also submitted requests to the governor of Luxor for a thorough investigation into the incident as well as measures to prevent recurrence," Japan's government spokesperson Yoshihide Suga told a news conference in Tokyo.
    Four Japanese - two couples from Tokyo in their 60s - had taken part in the popular balloon ride which turned to a tragedy during their 10-day group tour from Saturday, Japanese tour agency JTB Corp said.
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