6 year old floating away on a balloon UPDATE: balloon lands, boy later found hiding in family garage

[homer]

I really hope this ends well:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/10/15/colorado.boy.balloon/index.html

UPDATE: The balloon landed in a field but there's no boy inside. Strange.

[Thurston Fluff]

Not good. Mylar balloons are bad for the outdoors mostly due to the fact that they are not good in wind at all. They can leak fairly easy especially at their seems which are just heat sealed. They also conduct electricity very easily. I hope he did fallout at a low enough height to survive and can be found. It would probably be the best way for him to survive. I don't think he could go so high that the air pressure difference pops it since mylars lose a lot of lift power as the air gets colder but that is not a good type of balloon to have for a controlled landing.

[pitchleague]

This whole story is kind of strange. Why does the family have this balloon tied up outside their house? Why does it have a "basket" that is basically made of plywood and would barely survive a landing? I kind of walked into this story in the school office and now I see it posted here, so I'm not fully understanding, even after reading the CNN article.

[craigharmann]

It was a weather type of balloon, not a passenger balloon, from what I'm understanding. Strange story.

[I Heart Brewers]

I smell something very fishy. They were featured on wife swap?

This is the Dad?

[sbrylski]

The balloon (20 ft x 5 ft) doesn't seem to be big enough to lift a 50 pound kid. I don't think he was ever inside.

[trwi7]

They found the kid hiding in the garage.

[Schlitz001]

The link says he was found in a box in the attic. Either way, that's a tremendous amount of discipline for a 6-year old kid to stay hidden for that length of time. Maybe he was puling a prank on all of us.

[craigharmann]

They were featured on wife swap?

That screams something to me.....can't quite put my finger on it.

 

 

Oh yeah, and the kids' name is Falcon....why would a parent torture a child like that?

[homer]

craigharmann wrote:

 

Oh yeah, and the kids' name is Falcon....why would a parent torture a child like that?

Maybe that's why he was trying to escape in the balloon.

[sbrylski]

They found the kid hiding in the garage.

 

Who would have thought to look there?

[Jimbo]

I smell something very fishy. They were featured on wife swap?

This is the Dad?

They've been on two episodes of Wife Swap. The parents are a little goofy.

[trwi7]

Maybe that's why he was trying to escape in the balloon.

He was probably trying to get away from his crazy parents.

[owbc]

This is clearly a crazy family, but the calls for child support to come in are predictable, yet unfortunate.

 

On a more positive note, maybe this will give a bad name to some of the morons who storm chase without any professional background.

[craigharmann]

On a more positive note, maybe this will give a bad name to some of the morons who storm chase without any professional background.

Don't forget the UFO followers, too!

[sbrylski]

 

 

And the kid tells on his parents.? Oof.

[TooLiveBrew]

Maybe he was puling a prank on all of us.

 

Ashton Kutcher's secret lovechild?

 

 

And the kid tells on his parents. Oof.

 

That's awesome. Exactly what they deserve.

[JimH5]

On a more positive note, maybe this will give a bad name to some of the morons who storm chase without any professional background.

Or maybe it will give a bad name to those who decide what gets coverage on television news. All the networks got played by this non-story, while actual real stuff was happening in the world. They got caught chasing a spectacular nothing while the kid is hiding in his own house the whole time. God forbid they get scooped by the other channels. . .chumps.

[Patrick425]

Wow, this just keeps getting better. If you want to skip the rehash of what happened yesterday, go to about the 4 minute mark. The family looks like they have not slept for days and then the kid yaks! The interviewer (Merideth Viera?- spl?) acts like nothing happened.

 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/33341104#33341104

[Crew2323]

I think from watching that video, it is obvious that this was a set up. The dad had to know exactly what Falcon said, and he just completely ignored it, acting like it was never said. I felt like I was being played for a fool listening to the parents talk there.

 

EDIT: Perhaps this is why they did it. It's from FOX News, I know, but the info is interesting:

 

A Foxnews.com search of public records revealed that Heene, 48, and his wife, Mayumi, owe thousands of dollars in connection to a company called My You Me Productions. Prior to moving to Colorado, Heene and his wife were aspiring actors in Los Angeles who met at an acting school, a source told Foxnews.com.

The state of California filed a $5,812 tax lien against Heene in 1993, and records show a small-claims judgment of $5,000 was filed against him in Los Angeles County in 2006. County tax liens totaling roughly $2,000 were found in connection to the production company, which is now known as Alternate Reality Productions, according to productionhub.com.

It all seems to be making sense now.

[DougJones43]

On a more positive note, maybe this will give a bad name to some of the morons who storm chase without any professional background.

Or maybe it will give a bad name to those who decide what gets coverage on television news. All the networks got played by this non-story, while actual real stuff was happening in the world. They got caught chasing a spectacular nothing while the kid is hiding in his own house the whole time. God forbid they get scooped by the other channels. . .chumps.

The worst part is that the coverage continued (including interviews with the hoax family) AFTER it was found out that nothing actually happened. So, basically the news media feels the two biggest news stories in our world are Jon and Kate, and a kid hiding in his garage.

[I Heart Brewers]

I think the coverage continues because people are interested in the story. If there were no hits on the story's website or people tuning in on TV then it would probably be a non issue (or no threads on the topic...). I for one am following it now in the hopes that the family is made to pay for the resources that were used (helicopter, police officers, etc.) in the 'rescue'.

 

I'm sure it's wishful thinking but a boy can dream.

[TooLiveBrew]

I feel the exact same way as JimH & others on the 'news scoop-porting', but to be fair, they were 'reporting' based upon the information given to the local Sheriff's Dept.

 

I still find the lack of real journalism despicable, but just sayin'. The real ones at fault here are the falcon-people.

[LouisEly]

I think the coverage continues because people are interested in the story. If there were no hits on the story's website or people tuning in on TV then it would probably be a non issue (or no threads on the topic...). I for one am following it now in the hopes that the family is made to pay for the resources that were used (helicopter, police officers, etc.) in the 'rescue'.

 

I'm sure it's wishful thinking but a boy can dream.

Not to get too political but the media is fairly hypocritical - they criticize businesses for profiting but when it is time to show the news it is whatever gets ratings.

 

I too would love to see them slapped with that bill.

[Thurston Fluff]

The balloon (20 ft x 5 ft) doesn't seem to be big enough to lift a 50 pound kid. I don't think he was ever inside

 

I didn't notice the dimensions the first time I read it. It is not nearly big enough. That is why the plywood was so thin. It has to be because Mylars have very little lift for it's weight.

Not sure why the parents wouldn't have known it wasn't capable of it if they have used it before. One of the local tv stations came by the shop when my wife was here and she told them at the time he couldn't have been in it. While they were here the reporter got a call saying they found him and he was never on the balloon. Strike one up for the Balloon lady.