Dallas (AP) – A large balloon used by American customs and border protection for surveillance along the Texas border is broken …
Dallas (AP) – A large balloon used by American customs and border protection for surveillance along the Texas border has freed itself and traveled around 600 miles (966 kilometers) to the north before crashing while violent winds swept the state, officials said.
On Monday afternoon, the Aerostat system freed itself from its attachment during a “severe wind event” on South Padre Island and the contact was lost, customs and the protection of American borders said. The agency said it was located the next day in Hunt County, about 30 miles east of Dallas.
“All the neighbors were there. No one knew what it was, “said Clay Hinton WFAA TV station.
Then he said, officials started to arrive. “I was like, oh, ok it's not just a tarpaulin or anything,” he said. “It's something!”
A storm system This moved to the Dallas region early Tuesday, brought gusts of more than 75 MPH (120 km / h), and Monday afternoon, the gusts of wind in South Padre Island and the surroundings went from around 20 mi / h (32 km / h) to 30 mi / h (48 km / h), said national service officials.
A customs and border protection information sheet indicates that it uses the aerostat radar system attached to detecting low -altitude planes. The aerostat shell consists of an upper bedroom filled with helium, and the lower bedroom is an air -under pressure compartment.
Customs and border protection said that he would work with federal, state and local officials to investigate the incident.
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