Two men who lost control of their gas balloon in China’s Changbai mountains over the weekend drifted more than 10km (6 miles) before they landed safely and were immediately taken away by police for breaking aviation regulations.
The duo had planned to pick cones from giant pine trees near their village in Wangqing county, in the northeastern province of Jilin and set off on Saturday in a large, hydrogen-filled balloon, according to online news video platform Pear Video.
The men, who were not identified, drifted for about 12km after their balloon became untethered, before they were able to land near a gas station. The large white balloon attracted the attention of villagers on the ground, who alerted local police.
“They knew how to operate [the balloon] but they didn’t dare to land immediately because there were trees, so they floated for some time and landed on their own,” a police officer said.
China’s aviation rules require users of hydrogen balloons bigger than 3.2 cubic metres to seek advance approval from meteorological authorities at prefecture level or above. But, while the men may face a penalty, they are lucky to have escaped with their lives.
Two years ago a 59-year-old pine cone picker named Bi Kesheng from Jian – another county in the Changbai mountains – went missing after his balloon rose unexpectedly and disappeared in foggy conditions before his colleague could grab it back. He was never seen again.
Pine nuts are a major source of local income for the villagers who live in the foothills of the mountains, the country’s largest production base for the nutritious seeds. China contributed about a third of the world’s average pine nut production in the past five years, at more than 8,800 metric tonnes each year according to the International Nut and Dried Fruit Council.
China is also the world’s biggest exporter of shelled pine nuts, accounting for more than 60 per cent of global exports in the past five years, according to the council’s statistical yearbook for 2018/19.
The pine cones are usually harvested from trees either in the wild or grown in orchards between mid-September and mid-October. Traditionally, villagers have climbed to the top of the trees – which can be up to 30 metres tall – using spikes attached to their shoes.
It is dangerous work, as climbers can fall and be seriously injured, or even killed, if they lose their footing or if branches break. Gas balloons were introduced in recent years to save labour but the new method has also turned out to be dangerous, with several similar accidents reported by local media in recent years.
This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Balloon pair land in trouble with police
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