DISAPPOINTMENT VALLEY — A small Cessna plane flew dangerously close to a helicopter being used in a Bureau of Land Management wild-horse roundup in Disappointment Valley on Friday, Sept. 16, prompting a one-day postponement of the event.

“We are not able to comment on ongoing litigation, but we can confirm that the incident was reported to the FAA,” said BLM Public Affairs Specialist Shannon Borders.

The plane is owned, reported The Durango Herald, by Nucla resident Don Colcord. “A person who answered a telephone call at the Colcord residence said Don Colcord owns the plane but was not flying it Friday,” the Herald reported this week.

Officials halted operations one hour into the gather, after the Cessna 182 D repeatedly flew over the corral, coming close to the helicopter as it coaxed mustangs toward the mouth of the entrance to the corral.

The helicopter conducting the roundup would land whenever the plane appeared; a witness said the plane’s door was open, and a passenger could be seen inside; federal officers were not able to establish radio contact with the plane.