County and Weld County. Planes were rerouted around the balloon’s flight path. Reports that Denver International Airport was briefly shut down were later determined to be incorrect. The balloon finally landed two hours later at around 1:35 PM local time near Keenesburg, 12 miles (19 km) northeast of Denver International Airport. When the boy was not found inside the balloon, officials expressed concern that he might have fallen out during the flight. Although it was reported that it did not appear breached,[1] Margie Martinez of the Weld County Sheriff’s Office said that the door was unlocked in the balloon. A sheriff deputy reported seeing something fall from the balloon near Platteville, Colorado, and a photograph of the balloon in flight with a small black dot below was said to suggest the boy may have fallen out or that something had detached from the balloon. Search and rescue crews in Colorado searched for the boy for hours. At approximately 4:14 PM, CNN and other news reported that the boy was found hiding in a cardboard box in rafters above the garage, but county sheriff Jim Alderden later said, “For all we know he may have been two blocks down the road playing on the swing in the city park.” The New York Post estimated that the total cost of the rescue operation would be about million, although this has yet to be verified. The helicopter flights alone during the rescue operation cost about ,500. The Colorado National Guard assisted the effort with UH-60 Black Hawk and OH-58 Kiowa helicopters. Investigation After the incident, several news agencies began questioning whether it was a hoax. Editor & Publisher pointed out that “few had raised the issue of whether such a balloon could even lift off with a 50-pound (23 kg) kid inside and then float the way it did” during the flight. The police initially said it did not appear to be a hoax, but when Falcon and his family were being interviewed later in the day by Wolf Blitzer on CNN’s Larry King Live he asked Falcon, “Why did you not come out of the garage?” After his parents repeated the question, he responded, “You guys said that, um, we did this for the show.” Blitzer questioned Heene and Falcon further after the statement was made. The next day, during interviews on ABC’s Good Morning America and NBC’s Today, the boy vomited when he was asked about his comment and again when his father was asked about it, fueling more suspicion. Falcon’s answers prompted the sheriff’s office to pursue further investigations as to whether the incident was part of a publicity stunt. On October 16, Alderden said that “the suggestion that the boy ... was coached to hide seems inconceivable.” Larimer County Sheriff’s officials had consulted a Colorado State University physics professor, Brian Jones, who initially determined, based on the dimensions provided by Richard Heene, that the balloon could plausibly lift off with a boy of Falcon’s reported size (37 pounds or 17 kilograms). However, when authorities later measured the balloon, they concluded it was not large enough to lift the child. Upon inspecting the balloon, authorities learned it weighed 18 pounds (8.2 kg) more than Heene had said. Alderden said the base of the balloon could have handled 37 pounds (17 kg) without breaking, but to get airborne with those 37 pounds (17 kg) inside it would have to have been attached to a more powerful balloon. After viewing the home video of the balloon launch, Alderden said the balloon appeared to have been rising very quickly. During a press conference on October 18, Alderden called the incident a hoax, stating “we believe we have evidence at this point to indicate that this was a publicity stunt in hopes to better market themselves for a reality show.” He also said that charges in the case have not yet been filed but that the parents could face both misdemeanor and felony charges, including conspiracy to commit a crime, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, filing a false report with authorities, and attempting to influence a public servant. Alderden stated 88 The BLUES The BLUES 89 88 The BLUES The BLUES 89
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