A pilot lost his life when the aircraft he was operating as part of a gender reveal celebration in Mexico crashed on Sunday. A video shared online depicts the plane emitting pink smoke while flying over a couple standing in front of a sign that says “Oh baby,” surrounded by pink and blue balloons. The recording captures the moment when the plane’s left wing seems to detach from the main body as it moves away from the group of people below.
The tragic incident occurred during a gender reveal party in the town of San Pedro, Mexico, where the pilot of the Piper PA-25, whose name was not disclosed by authorities, succumbed to his injuries in the hospital after the crash. Paramedics initially provided medical care to the pilot at the crash site in San Pedro, Navolato, and subsequently transported him to a local hospital, where he ultimately passed away. The exact cause of the crash remains unclear, and there were no other reported injuries resulting from the accident.
Gender reveal parties were initially intended as a lighthearted way for expectant parents to inform their loved ones whether they were expecting a boy or a girl. Originally, these gatherings involved simple activities such as cutting a cake with colored icing or setting off fireworks. However, some parents have opted for more elaborate and potentially dangerous gender reveals.
For instance, in a 2017 event in Arizona, guests were asked to shoot at a makeshift target marked with the words “Boy” and “Girl.” When the target, filled with highly explosive Tannerite, exploded, it resulted in a blue cloud and ignited the surrounding area, ultimately causing a wildfire spanning 47,000 acres and costing the responsible individuals over $8 million in restitution. In another incident in Iowa in October 2019, a gender reveal party went awry when the family accidentally created a pipe bomb. The detonation of the device caused the entire pipe to explode, sending shrapnel flying and tragically leading to the death of a grandmother who was nearby.