A hot-air hassle. NewsChannel 3 first brought you this story as it broke yesterday. A hot air balloon caught in power lines during an attempted landing.  It happened at Dillon Road near Interstate 10 in Coachella. No one in the balloon was injured, but power was briefly knocked out in the area.

So just how safe is hot air ballooning?

Hot air balloon expert Clotaire Castanier says he prides his company on balloon safety.

“It's very important. You have to have good equipment first, and you have to check your equipment all the time.”

Although his company, Balloons Above the Desert, has never had an accident, he says mishaps, like getting caught in power lines, are not uncommon.

“What I understand happened last night, there was not that much wind. It is not a question of wind, it's that I do believe the pilot did not see the power lines.”

Even though accidents are rare, Clotaire says that power lines are always a concern when hot air ballooning.

The company whose balloon got caught in the power lines, Southern California Balloon Company, says it was a minor incident. They didn't want to appear on camera, but told NewsChannel 3 that these types of accidents happen, and that everyone was okay.

But Clotaire says that safety should be the first priority in ballooning.

“What we try to do is we don't take any chances. If it's a little too windy, we are not afraid to cancel the flight. Naturally everybody's going to be a little upset and disappointed, but that's the way it's going to be.”

And he says accidents like this one shouldn't stop you from wanting to ride in a hot air balloon.