Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem quickly fled the podium at a news conference after a reporter pressed her about a US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) possible balloon blunder that forced an airport to close.

Noem abruptly ended a presser on Friday discussing election security after she was questioned about the closure of El Paso airspace on Tuesday due to a party balloon possibly being mistaken for a Mexican cartel drone.

‘Can you confirm that CBP actually hit a party balloon that it thought was a drone with a laser earlier this week?’ asked a reporter. ‘If that is true, why wasn’t the action coordinated with the FAA?’

An FAA administrator decided to close the airspace on Tuesday without alerting the White House, the Pentagon, Homeland Security officials, or local officials. Hours later, the agency lifted the ban, adding that the military had refused to give it information on when the anti-drone laser would be used.

‘You know, this was a joint agency task force mission that was undertaken,’ said Noem during her Friday press conference.

‘And, we’re continuing to work on the communication through that, but recognize we’re grateful for the partnership of the Department of War and the FAA as we go forward.’

The reporter went for a follow-up question but was denied by Noem, who turned away to thank the rest of the press before stepping away.

A laser was, in fact, used to shoot down party balloons, sources told NBC News. 

Officially, the US Border Patrol has not said whether its employees were behind the deployment of the laser, meant to obliterate drones using extreme heat.

When asked by the Daily Mail whether its agents had used the laser, an agency spokesman told us to direct our questions to the White House.

The department also refused to say exactly where the laser was used and what it was shot at.

Border Patrol agents who spoke with Daily Mail did not know who had deployed the laser; however, they believe the unverified narrative about the balloons is incorrect.

They explained that drones sent by Mexican cartels often breach US airspace in and around El Paso- calling it a ‘regular occurrence.’

The White House stated on Wednesday, saying: ‘Mexican cartel drones breached US airspace.’

‘The Department of Defense took action to disable the drones,’ it added.

El Paso airport describes itself as the gateway to West Texas, southern New Mexico, and northern Mexico. Southwest, United, American, and Delta all operate flights from there, among others.

The last time US airspace was shut down for national security was after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The FAA also temporarily closed airspace over New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina, but that was due to storm damage.

Unlike previous restrictions, the El Paso closure blocked all flights over the city, including police and medical helicopters.

It is a move rarely, if ever, seen in modern US aviation.