The large balloons used by US Customs and Border Patrol for surveillance along the Texas border broke freely and traveled about 600 miles north before crashing as heavy winds cleared the state, officials said.
On Monday afternoon, the aerostat system was released from the tether during a “hard wind event” on South Padre Island, leaving contact lost and US Customs Border Security.
The agency said the following day it was in Hunt County, about 30 miles east of Dallas.
“All the neighbors were there,” Clay Hinton said. WFAA TV station.
Then he said, staff members began to arrive. “I was like, oh, it wasn't just a tarp or something,” he said. “What is that?”
The storm system, which travelled through the Dallas area early Tuesday, brought gusts of winds above 75 mph, with gusts in South Padre Island and surrounding areas ranging from about 20 to 30 mph on Monday afternoon, a National Weather Service official said.
Customs and Border Security fact sheets say they use tethered air attack radar systems to detect low-altitude aircraft.
The aerostat hull consists of an upper chamber filled with helium, with the lower chamber being a pressurized air compartment.
Customs and border protection said they will work with federal, state and local officials to investigate the incident.
