A 6-year-old boy, who was feared adrift in a wayward homemade helium balloon, was found safe in his home after a massive search Thursday afternoon.
The discovery ended a nerve-racking four-hour chase and hunt that began because authorities and family members believed that Falcon Heene accidentally lifted off in the family's silver saucer-shaped weather balloon when it became untethered from their Fort Collins back yard.
Tens of thousands of people worldwide watched on live TV and on the Internet as helicopter cameras tracked the balloon as it floated thousands of feet above rural Colorado before it softly crashed in a plowed field.
Swarming deputies soon reported that the boy was not on board.
"Be advised it's empty ... It's empty," an official announced on the Larimer County dispatcher radio.
That prompted a massive ground search, with law enforcement agencies retracing the balloon's path in an effort to try and locate the missing boy.
Then, just after 4 p.m., a stunning announcement from the Larimer County sheriff.
"He's at the house and he's fine," Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden told a throng of TV cameras and reporters. "He's been hiding in a cardboard box in the attic above the garage."
The sheriff said it's not unusual to have missing children hide.
"They see all the commotion, they hear people looking for them, they get afraid that they're going to be in trouble, so they hide," he said. "I can't tell you how many times this has happened over the course of my career."
Heene Family Relieved
Falcon's emotionally drained and relieved parents recounted their roller-coaster day before a bank of TV cameras Thursday afternoon.
Richard Heene said the family thought Falcon has scrambled inside the weather balloon's equipment compartment, because he told his 10-year-old brother "he was going to sneak inside."
The Heene family, as seen in a promotional picture for ABC's "Wifeswap." Falcon is the boy in the black jacket.
While clutching a glow stick, the impish Falcon explained that he climbed up the rafters in the garage and hid there after his father chastised him for climbing into the balloon earlier in the day.
"He scared me, because he yelled at me," the boy said in a high, thin voice. "So I went in the attic. I heard shouting. I didn't want to come out very soon, or else he would yell at me. I thought I would get in trouble."
The father explained that he barked at the boy to not climb in the lighter-than-air balloon because its outer skin is charged with a million volts of electricity to help steer it.
"It's potentially dangerous if you get inside and the electricity comes on," said Richard Heene, who said he feared his missing son might had been electrocuted in the runaway balloon.
"I'm really sorry I yelled at him," Heene said as he cradled his son in his arms.
When a reporter asked if the boy was "grounded" for his high-flying hoax, the parents said no.
"We don't ground our children. But we're going to talk to him," the dad said.
When authorities didn't find the boy after the balloon crashed in a field, the father said: "That kind of tore me apart. The only thing I could think of was he had fallen out."
Then Falcon came out of hiding and mom and dad learned their youngest son was alive.
"Ahh, Buddy. My legs got weak," Richard Heene said.
The parents, who appeared with the boys in two episodes of the ABC TV reality show, "Wife Swap," denied speculation that the chaotic misadventure -- dubbed "Balloon Boy" in Internet reports -- was a publicity stunt.
"That's horrible. After the crap that we just went through? No, no, no," the weary father insisted.
Richard Heene said Falcon has always been adventurous.
The parents repeatedly thanked the local police and sheriff -- and even news helicopters -- for searching for Falcon.
"You guys are great," Richard Heene said.
"Thank you. Thank you so much," the mother, Mayumi Heene, added.
Richard Heene has been described by friends as a sort of "mad scientist." He is a storm chaser and has a Web site, called The Psyience Detectives, which "investigates the mysteries of science and psychic phenomenon."
7NEWS meteorologist Richard Ortner described Heene as "very intelligent and wildly creative." Ortner accompanied the Heene family as they were storm chasing last year.
Richard Heene said he crafted the homemade weather balloon for experiments in his back yard. He had apparently been working on the balloon for some time.
"This sort of thing is normal for them," neighbor Bob Licko said.
Sheriff's Department Doesn't Believe Story Was Hoax
The sheriff's department said they don't believe the incident was a hoax, and don't plan on charging the Heenes for the huge outlay of resources in the massive search.
Volunteers who helped searched for the boy said they don't feel it was a waste of time or resources and that it was the best ending anyone could hope for.
The Great Balloon Adventure
The balloon was aloft for about two hours, traveling roughly 50 miles southeast over Colorado, pushed by light winds.
Authorities earlier described the craft as a sort of "flying saucer" weather balloon and said it reached an altitude of 15,000 feet before it began descending.
At one point, it was roughly 3,500 feet above the ground and moving about 20 mph. At times, it listed to one side as part of it deflated.
The foil balloon lifted into the air from the family's Fort Collins home at about 11:30 a.m. and landed about 2 miles northeast of Prospect Reservoir at 1:35 p.m., in Weld County.
The family called police and reported Falcon could not be found after the balloon lifted off. His older brother told his parents and authorities that he saw Falcon climb into a box attached to the bottom of the balloon and the balloon lifted off, Larimer County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Kathy Messick said.
Authorities said the boy's home and neighborhood were immediately searched and there was no sign of the boy, leading everyone to believe Falcon had climbed into the craft. It was not clear why they didn't find the boy during earlier searches of the home.
The balloon did have a box that carried batteries, Messick said. The box was attached to the aircraft and there was damage to the area where the boy was believed to have been.
"It was never intended for any more weight than the batteries that were in the compartment," Messick said.
Earlier, authorities thought the boy might have fallen from the balloon and were closely examining an amateur photo that showed a black mass below the balloon to determine if it was something that fell from the balloon. The photo was taken by Lisa Eklund as the balloon floated away from the boy's neighborhood.
"We were sitting, eating, looking out where they normally shoot off hot air balloons. My husband said he saw something. It went over our rooftop. Then we saw the big round balloonish thing, it was spinning," Eklund said.
After the balloon took off, there were sporadic reports on its location as it drifted with the wind over the flat Colorado countryside. Airtracker 7 located the balloon at 12:35 p.m., at about 8,000 feet in Weld County. It appeared to be slightly tilted at that time.
"The structure at the bottom of the balloon ... is made of extremely thin plywood and won't withstand any kind of a crash at all," said Erik Nilsson, Larimer County Emergency Manager, as the balloon floated thousands of feet over farmland.
Deputies from Larimer and Weld counties tracked the balloon from the ground as it drifted in the skies. Experts had said it could remain airborne for up to 12 hours, although it was clearly deflated on one side by 1:25 p.m., and was descending to about 400 feet off the ground at 1:30 p.m.
When it landed, at 1:35 p.m., deputies immediately surrounded it, secured the balloon and then radioed the news, "Be advised, it's empty. It's empty."
An investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board examined the craft about two hours after it landed. The investigator could be seen taking photos of the bottom of the craft and peering inside.
Balloon Diverts Flights At DIA
While the balloon was airborne, Larimer County fire dispatchers asked if Airtracker 7 could use an outside speaker to ask the boy if he had a valve to release helium.
"Is there a way to release some of the helium that this kid may know?" the dispatcher asked. "Maybe we can get him to lower it."
There was no visible response from the balloon.
There was worry at one point that the balloon might drift into air traffic control corridors used by Denver International Airport, based on its current location and direction. Deputies alerted DIA air traffic controllers to warn them about letting aircraft fly through the area.
Flights heading to the north from DIA were diverted while the balloon was in the air. A DIA spokesman said flights were diverted for 15 to 20 minutes but airport operations were not affected.
The Colorado National Guard launched a Blackhawk helicopter and a smaller Kiowa helicopter to try and intercept the balloon, but they were never seen. Airlife Denver -- a medical helicopter -- also joined in the search for the boy from the air.