CNN is now reporting that Falcon Heene has been found alive, hiding in his attic. Psyche! Kid, you are in trou-bull!

Here’s the rest of the story as we followed it starting around 3:30 Eastern:

Holy crap.

A six-year-old boy has floated away in a homemade helium-balloon contraption in the skies over Denver. Apparently the boy was hiding in the balloon when winds picked it up and carried it into the air.

Right now (about 3:30 Eastern), he is drifting around in the skies over Denver and rescue crews are trying to figure out what to do.

ABC News has live video. We can’t embed it, but you can see it here.

Pray for him.

Update: It’s on the ground and they’re trying to get him out. It seems like it’s taking them an awfully long time to get him out of the balloon. Hopefully that’s not an ominous development.

Update II: The news anchor in the copter says he’s heard that the boy is OK. Not sure who he heard that from. Maybe they’re communicating with him, but it doesn’t appear he’s yet emerged from the craft.

Update III: Something’s not right. The balloon is just laying on the ground and it doesn’t even look like anyone’s trying to get the boy out – if he’s in there at all. Was there ever a boy in there in the first place?

Update IV: The balloon is apparently empty.

Update V: The report that the six-year-old was in the balloon was based on his older brother telling his parents he saw him climb in. He’s not in the balloon. Where is he? Was he ever in there?

Update VI: Are you kidding me? The missing boy is Falcon Heene, and his family was recently on that stupid ABC show Wife Swap. His parents are storm chasers. What the hell is going on here?

Update VII: Here’s how the story appears to be coming together.  The balloon was in the backyard, with a small box affixed to it. Falcon climbed into the box while his brothers stood atop the house with a camera. Then the balloon took off. When the balloon landed, the box was no longer attached.

Unless this was all a hoax and Falcon was never in the box, it has to have fallen from the balloon while he was in it, which only leaves the questions o f where he is and whether he survived the fall. If the photo at right, courtesy of the Denver Post, shows the box falling from the balloon, I’m afraid his chances are not good.

Update VIII: CNN now reports (happy, Fuller?) that the boy has been found hiding in his attic. Holy crap.

7 Responses to “Balloon boy found hiding in attic, CNN reports”