AI-written summary of reporting by New York Post. No human editor reviewed this. AI can misread or omit facts — read the original, linked below.
ABSTRACT

An Amazon Prime Air delivery drone dropped a package into the backyard swimming pool of Richmond, Texas, resident Lindsey Austen on Monday, according to Storyful. Video of the incident circulated widely on social media Thursday.

New York Post

Amazon Prime Air drone drops package into Texas customer's pool

Amazon Prime Air drone drops package into Texas customer's pool
Aug 20, 2026, 8:36 PM

An Amazon Prime Air delivery drone dropped a package into the backyard swimming pool of Richmond, Texas, resident Lindsey Austen on Monday, according to Storyful. Video of the incident circulated widely on social media Thursday.

Context

Austen said she received an alert that her package was out for delivery via Prime Air, then went outside after hearing the drone. She said the drone opened its hatch and released the package directly into her pool. 'When it went into the pool, I was shocked,' Austen said. 'I don't think I'll be wanting any more drone deliveries.'

The video spread on Thursday, one day after Amazon announced plans to expand Prime Air to 500 US cities by the end of the year — a sixfold increase. The company said the expansion would cover hundreds of new areas including suburbs of Chicago, Atlanta, Syracuse, and Cleveland, with deliveries possible in as fast as 30 minutes.

Amazon said Prime Air has already delivered hundreds of thousands of packages this year. The service is limited to one package at a time, with a maximum weight of five pounds. Each drone site is designed to serve multiple cities within a metro area and will operate primarily in suburban areas away from skyscrapers and major airports.

The service is free for Amazon Prime members on orders of more than $50, $2.99 for Prime members on smaller orders, and $4.99 for non-members.

All Perspectives
Customer Lindsey Austen: Austen said she was shocked when the package went into the pool and stated: 'I don't think I'll be wanting any more drone deliveries.'
Amazon spokesperson Allie Payne: Payne told KHOU11 that 'Prime Air provides customers with fast, reliable delivery across a broad selection of products and the response from customers using Prime Air has been overwhelmingly positive.' She added: 'Incidents are extremely rare, and when a delivery doesn't go as planned, we learn from it to improve the experience and take steps to prevent it from happening in the future.' Payne also said Amazon's A-to-Z Guarantee covers situations where items do not arrive as expected, offering a refund or replacement.
Gaps & Unknowns
  • The source does not state what item was inside the package that fell into the pool.
  • The source does not state whether Austen received a refund or replacement for the damaged delivery.
  • The source does not state what caused the drone to misidentify the pool as a delivery location.
  • The source does not state how many total delivery incidents involving Prime Air have been recorded.
  • The source does not state whether Amazon contacted Austen directly following the incident.
Sources & Further Reading
  1. New York Post — original

Read the original at New York Post

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