Falcon Heene: Balloon Boy in His House

ABC News is reporting that the Balloon Boy, Falcon Heene, was found in his house.

From KDVR:

A flying saucer-shaped helium balloon drifted away from a home in Fort Collins, Colorado Thursday. However, contrary to earlier fears, there was not a 6-year-old boy inside.

The Larimer County Sheriff's Office says the boy's family kept the saucer behind their home on Fossil Ridge Road in Fort Collins. The family initially told officials the boy, identified as Falcon Heene, climbed into the basket attached to the saucer and somehow the rope that held the aircraft in place became untied at about 11:00 a.m.

Authorities say the balloon may have risen to an elevation of approximately 15,000 feet as it drifted over Colorado's eastern plains. Due to high winds in the area, experts say the balloon may have reached speeds of nearly 60 miles per hour.

During a news conference at 4 p.m., Larimer County authorities announced that Heene was alive and well. He had apparently been hiding inside a cardboard box in the attic of the family's garage. Sheriff Jim Alderden was in the middle of briefing the media on the search for Heene when a deputy interrupted him with the good news.

More, from the Associated Press:

A 6-year-old Colorado boy feared to have floated off in a helium balloon has been found safe at his home, hiding in a cardboard box in the garage attic. Sheriff Jim Alderman turned to reporters during a news conference and held thumbs up and said, "He's at the house." Alderden said an investigator on the scene saw the boy and he was fine.

He said the boy apparently has been in the attic the whole time.

The boy's brother had said he saw 6-year-old Falcon Heene get in the balloon before it took off. The flight last two hours and spanned 50 miles and set off a frantic search.

Of course, I'm glad the child is safe.

That said, I think the family should be required to pay for a reasonable share of the resources spent on tracking the balloon and desperately trying to save the 6-year-old from plunging to his bloody death.

This drama went on for two hours!

The military was involved. This was no minor thing.

Didn't the family and authorities search every nook and cranny of the home?

If I had two hours, I think I could search my home pretty thoroughly. If I were looking for my child, I would have ripped the place apart.

I hate to admit this, but yes, I saw the Heene family on Wife Swap.

The father, Richard Heene, was a nut, a real loon. He was verbally abusive. The boys were disrespectful.

The producers of the show encourage conflict, so it's hard to say if the episode reflected the family fairly. A lot can be concocted in the editing process.

Still, I think it's possible this was a stunt. Obviously, the family is into self-promotion. You have to be a little weird to take part in a show like Wife Swap.

The Heene family was on the show twice. The Heenes were voted by viewers to be on the 100th episode of Wife Swap.

In October 2008, ABC asked viewers to help celebrate the 100th episode by voting for favorite families from past episodes whom they'd like to see swap lives again. From a pool of 24 past families, ABC viewers from across the country went to ABC.com and picked their favorite four families. Now it's finally time to announce which two families were chosen by the producers to participate in the 100th episode's ultimate Wife Swap:

The families that have been chosen for the 100th episode swap are the storm-chasing, science-obsessed Heene family from Colorado and the psychic, performing arts-loving Silvers from Florida.

When the Heene family aren't chasing storms, they devote their time to scientific experiments that include looking for extraterrestrials and building a research-gathering flying saucer to send into the eye of the storm. In this ultimate swap, the Heenes swap lives with a psychic mom who speaks to the dead and can control the weather, her husband and her children -- who believe they are destined to be stars. This show will feature aliens, punk rockers, past-life regression and, for the first time ever, the children from the two families will face off in a kids' table meeting. "Heene/Silver," the 100th episode of Wife Swap, destined to become a classic!

"Destined to become a classic"?

I think it's definitely become a classic.

I bet ABC is working out a deal for an EXCLUSIVE interview with the family right now.
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Watch the Heene family on Wife Swap.



See what I mean?