Balloon flight gone wrong!

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Priest Missing On Helium Balloon Flight

A daredevil priest who used hundreds of helium balloons to try to smash a flying record has gone missing off the coast of Brazil

Rescuers in helicopters and fishing boats are searching off the southern coast of Santa Catarina state, where pieces of balloons were found.

Rev Adelir Antonio de Carli, 41, took off from the city of Paranagua on Sunday afternoon, wearing a helmet, thermal suit and a parachute.

He was reported missing about eight hours later after losing contact with port officials.

Carli had a GPS device, a satellite phone, and is said to be an experienced skydiver.

The Roman Catholic cleric wanted to break a 19-hour balloon flying record to raise money for a spiritual rest stop for truckers in Paranagua.

A video showed the priest soaring into the air to cheers from a crowd below.

He soared to 20,000ft and then descended to about 8,200ft for his planned flight to the city of Dourados, 465 miles north-west of his parish.

But winds pushed him out to sea, and Carli was some 30 miles off the coast when he last contacted Paranagua's port authority.

"We are absolutely confident he will be found alive and well, floating somewhere in the ocean," a church official said.

"He knew what he was doing and was fully prepared for any kind of mishap."

Source: Sky News 

Vocabulary:

priest - 


smash -

 

raise money (for charity) -


soar -


 cheer -


mishap -

 


The latest is that the poor man is still missing. What started off as a funny story seems to have ended tragically.

Have you heard of any stories lately that made you laugh?

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