Rescuers reached a cluster of brightly colored party balloons floating in the ocean off Brazil’s coast on Tuesday but did not find the Roman Catholic priest who had been using them in a bid to set a flight record.
Reverend Adelir Antonio di Carli remained missing after lifting off from the port city of Paranagua on Sunday strapped to hundreds of helium-filled balloons. He was wearing a helmet, an aluminum thermal flight suit, water proof coveralls and a parachute and was seeking to break a record for the longest time in-flight with party balloons.
He planned to use the money raised in his attempt to break the 19-hour record to fund a “spiritual” rest-stop for truckers in Paranagua, home to Brazil’s largest grain port.
Di Carli was reported missing about eight hours after taking off when he lost contact with port authority officials.
“Given his physical condition and the equipment he was carrying, I would say there is an 80 percent chance that he is still alive,” said Johnny Coelho, commander of the Penha Fire Department, which is searching for the priest.
Di Carli, who has taken jungle survival and mountain climbing courses, was carrying a buoyant chair and enough drinking water and cereal bars to stay alive for at least five days, Coelho said.
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