The pilot of a hot air balloon that crashed in Arizona, killing four people, had elevated levels of ketamine in his system at the time, according to autopsy and toxicology reports.
Cornelius van der Walt had enough ketamine in his system to be considered too impaired to drive, according to a toxicology panel obtained by USA Today. It noted 37-year-old van der Walt did not have a prescription for the drug, nor was it used during first responders’ efforts to revive him while responding to the crash.
“In overdose, ketamine produces effects such as hallucinations, delirium, irrational behavior and vision and GI disturbances, progressing to cardiovascular and respiratory irregularities,” NMS Labs staffers wrote in their report.
Van der Walt was helming the Kubicek BB 85 hot air balloon, operated by Droplyne Hot Air Balloon Rides, when it went down on Jan. 14. There were 13 passengers onboard at the time of takeoff, but authorities noted eight skydivers exited the gondola before it hurtled toward the ground.
According to a report previously released by the National Transportation and Safety Board, the balloon went down due to an “unspecified problem,” crashing in the desert some 65 miles southeast of Phoenix.
Three passengers — Chayton Wiescholek, 28, of Union City, Mich.; Kaitlynn Bartrom, 28, of Andrews, Ind.; and Atahan Kiliccote, 24, of Cupertino, Calif. — died in the crash while another was seriously injured. van der Walt was also killed.
According to the autopsy, he suffered severe injuries during the crash, leaving him with “large scalp contusions.” He also suffered numerous rib fractures, muscle injuries, a brain hemorrhage, and abrasions all over his body. The autopsy concluded those combined injuries led to his death.
In a GoFundMe set up in wake of the crash, van der Walt’s loved ones remembered him as the “embodiment of adventure and travel, of good deeds and altruism.”
