El Paso, Texas - A party balloon may have been responsible the brief but chaotic closure of El Paso's airspace, despite government claims of a "cartel drone."

The FAA sparked alarm on Tuesday evening by abruptly announcing that it would close the airspace over El Paso for 10 days, citing "security reasons."

On Wednesday morning, however, the FAA announced on X that it was reopening the airspace and declared that "there is no threat to commercial aviation."

Transportation Secretary Sean claimed that the disruption had been caused by a "cartel drone incursion" and clarifying that "the threat has been neutralized."

A CBS News report, however, reported that the FAA's shock announcement on Tuesday came as a result of a major communications breakdown.

Sources told the outlet that the DHS launched anti-drone weapon that utilizes lasers, loaned to the department by the Pentagon, to shoot down what it thought were "cartel" drones.

Instead, reports suggest that the flying object turned out to be a party balloon.

"The airspace closure over El Paso triggered immediate chaos and confusion and cannot be dismissed as a minor misunderstanding," said Rhode Island Senator Jack Reed in a statement to Stars and Stripes.

"Conflicting accounts coming from different parts of the federal government only deepen public concern and raise serious questions about coordination and decision-making," he warned.