DENVER — A 6-year-old boy is missing after apparently being swept away Thursday on his family’s experimental helium balloon.
The boy climbed aboard the balloon this morning at his family’s home in Fort Collins, Colo. His brother later alerted his parents that the balloon had taken off with the boy onboard, Denver’s 9News reports.
The balloon landed three hours later just northeast of Denver International Airport, but rescue crews found no sign of the boy when they reached the aircraft. Authorities are trying to locate a box that was attached to a balloon, which is also missing.
“At this point, we are thinking that he did not fall out of the balloon and is somewhere on the ground,” Larimer County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Eloise Campanella told CNN. “The basket itself was not breached. It does not look like he fell out of it, but again, this is all conjecture.”
The missing child has been identified as Falcon Heene. His parents, Richard and Mayumi Heene, have previously appeared on the ABC show “Wife Swap.”
According to the network’s Web site, the Heene family “devote their time to scientific experiments that include looking for extraterrestrials and building a research-gathering flying saucer to send into the eye of the storm.”
The balloon was described as dome-shaped and covered with foil, while measuring 20 feet long and 5 feet high. It’s traveling speed was believed to 20-25 mph.
“This balloon was never meant to actually carry anybody,” a Fort Collins police spokesman said. “It was just a family project they were working on. The little compartment where their son is in is very small and it’s not attached very well.”
Photo: © ABC
