Balloon drops in on northwest valley neighborhood

A hot air balloon that landed near a residential area in the northwest valley Friday was nothing more than a reminder that balloons go where the wind goes.

The balloon landed behind homes on Governors Hill Street at about 9:20 a.m. Friday, shocking some residents of the neighborhood.

“(We) heard a whooshing sound … I went to the garage to see if something was wrong with the water heater or softener; my first thought was, “Oh no, not a repair job!” said Gene, a homeowner in the area who asked not to have his last name used. “We couldn’t see anything wrong, then went upstairs and looked to the west, and lo and behold, in our face was a hot air balloon.”

Barry McGonigle, president of Vegas Balloon Rides, said the company doesn’t often fly in that area, so some residents of the neighborhood were excited to see the balloon.

“They gently ‘walked’ it into the cul-da-sac for them to experience it close up … No emergency, no problems, just tried to share the magic of hot air ballooning with the neighbors,” he said.

McGonigle said onlookers often forget that unlike other aircraft, balloons are at the mercy of the wind direction.

“Balloons fly in the wind direction that Mother Nature provides each day,” he said. “Just as important, what goes up must come down.”