The man, identified only by his surname Hu, and a companion were collecting pine cones on Sunday in a forest park in northeast China’s Heilongjiang province when they lost control and the balloon set off on a 200-mile journey. The other person jumped to the ground and began searching for the balloon that also escaped Hu. State broadcaster CCTV said rescuers were able to contact the man by mobile phone the next morning and instructed him to slowly deflate the balloon to land safely. It took another day to reach the ground in the Fangzheng area, near the border with Russia. Hu was in good health except for a sore lower back, possibly from standing the entire time he was in the air, CCTV reported. An official who gave only his surname, Fu, to Hailin Forestry Administration Co’s publicity department on Thursday confirmed the balloon incident and described Hu as 40 years old. He said Hu was recovering in hospital, but declined to elaborate. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Pine nuts are found inside pine nuts and are a frequent ingredient in dishes served in northeastern China, formerly known as Manchuria.
