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Balloons take to blue skies for annual carnival

Chloe Hughesin Shropshire
News imageBBC Weather Watchers/Grum Two people inside a wicker hot-air balloon basket in the sky. One has a hand over their eyes like a shield. The sky in front of them is peach, blue and slightly grey with minimal cloud. Below them are treetops which are covered with white fog and mistBBC Weather Watchers/Grum
News imageBBC Weather Watchers/Auper-skier A rainbow striped hot-air balloon is in the blue sky, while a large blue one is inflated but remains on the ground. Next to it is a yellow patchwork style balloon with blue, pink and orange squares. it is in the middle of being inflated and is lying on its side. Also being inflated on its side is a yellow balloon with a light blue strip, and a red shield on it.BBC Weather Watchers/Auper-skier
Morning mist could be seen on the early morning flight on Saturday.
Up, up and away!

Dozens of balloons took to the skies above sunny Oswestry for the town's 10th balloon carnival.

The free two-day event in Cae Glas Park on Saturday and Sunday was organised by Nightingale House Hospice, the town council and the local business improvement district.

Although some flights did not get airborne over the weekend, because of high winds, it was all clear for the launch of the event on Saturday morning.

Alongside the balloons, which were inflated and tethered for some of the day, there were activities including magic shows, animal displays, and balloon modelling.

News imageFour hot-air balloons flying quite low above a row of terraced houses. The sky is light blue and completely clear
The balloons created a unique view for residents looking out of their windows

The event is run by volunteers and the public were encouraged to make voluntary donations to the Wrexham-based hospice, which provides palliative care for people with life-limiting illnesses.

This year, they went ahead with extra safety measures in place amid concerns about the drought and dry fields at risk of fire.

Organisers said the balloons had extra assessments to ensure they were safe to fly, due to concerns over flames coming from the burners.

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