Hot air balloon crashes in Egypt's Luxor, 1 tourist killed

Egyptian officials say a sightseeing balloon carrying foreign tourists over the southern city of Luxor has crash landed, killing one tourist and injuring seven.

The balloon, with tourists from different nationalities and Egyptians onboard, crashed to the west of the city of Luxor, MENA said.

The health ministry said a woman was killed and 12 people injured but gave no other details. 

The officials say today's incident was caused by strong winds that forced the balloon off its course above the city's pharaonic temples and tombs.

There were no details immediately on the nationalities of the victims. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity under regulations.

Hot air balloon incidents have occurred in the past over ancient Luxor.

In 2013, 19 foreign tourists were killed when their balloon caught fire. In 2016, Egypt temporarily halted balloon flights after 22 Chinese tourists suffered minor injuries in a crash landing of their hot air balloon.

Since then, balloon rides are monitored by cameras and banned from flying above 2,000 metres.