DALLAS (AP) — A large balloon used by U.S. Customs and Border Protection for surveillance along the Texas border broke free and traveled about 600 miles (966 kilometers) to the north before crashing as high winds swept through the state, officials said.

Strong winds untethered a U.S. Customs and Border Protection surveillance blimp and carried it 600 miles across Texas.

Strong winds swept through Texas over the last few days, causing damage and, in one case, sending a blimp hundreds of miles across the state. A tethered aerostat system, which is a form of radar surveillance blimp used by Customs and Border Protection,