AP
 
Salt Lake City, Dec 13 (mb): A colurful bunch of balloons inflated to honour a beloved teacher who died of leukemia broke free and travelled more than 900 miles to a South Dakota cornfield.

"The balloons were still full of air," said Michael Beadle, who recently discovered them while deer hunting near Onaka.

Stephanie Bernritter, 39, a teacher at West High School, died last month.

On November 30, hundreds of students stood below clusters of balloons as they paid tributes to their English teacher. Their emotional messages about Bernritter were attached to the balloons.

Most balloons were tied to the football stadium but a few escaped, including a bunch held by Bernritter's husband, Kevin Van der Merwe.

Beadle did some searching on the Internet and learned about the teacher's death.

When he heard about the balloons landing in South Dakota, Van der Merwe recalled how his wife had wanted to fly.

"She was so ready to just be free," he said.