'Flaming Basketball' Filmed Flying Through the Sky - Seconds Later Man's House Explodes
The home of a northern California man may have been the ultimate landing point of a meteor that locals described seeing streak through the night sky on Nov. 4.
Penn Valley Fire Department Captain Josh Miller indicated that witnesses observed a “flaming ball falling from the sky” in Nevada County that Friday night, according to KCRA-TV.
Those who witnessed the object saw it land in the “general area” of Dustin Procita’s home, according to Miller. Procita’s house caught fire that same evening.
“Everyone I talked to said it was a flaming ball falling from the sky and landed in that general area,” Miller said.
Home surveillance camera footage reveals a shining object descending to and striking the Earth.
New video shows the moment a fireball was seen in the sky over Northern California. The timing was consistent with reports of a meteor hitting a house causing a fire. pic.twitter.com/Q4QpnkvZqH
— Joshua Jered (@Joshuajered) Novembe 6, 2022
In a remarkable twist, Procita describes being inside his house when the suspected meteor strike occurred.
“I heard a big bang,” Procita told KCRA. “I started to smell smoke. I went onto my porch, and it was completely engulfed in flames.”
It took four hours for firefighters to extinguish a blaze that quickly grew out of control.
Friday at 7:26 pm, CAL FIRE responded with Penn Valley FPD to a Residential Structure Fire near Lake Englebright. E2354 arrived first reporting a well involved trailer and vehicle, with no threat to vegetation. The fire was contained, committing resources for approx. 4 hours. pic.twitter.com/WPfjtZcLj8
— CAL FIRE Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit (@CALFIRENEU) November 5, 2022
Procita described the flying object as a “flaming basketball” when he saw a video of the strike, according to NBC News.
The home was ultimately destroyed as a result of the fire, and one of Procita’s dogs died in a blaze that consumed the structure.
The experience has soured Procita’s view of meteor showers.
“I always watched meteor showers as a kid, but I didn’t want them landing in my yard or through my roof,” he said.
“They said it’s a one in four trillion chance, so I guess I might be buying a lottery ticket today.”
It’ll take two weeks to officially determine the cause of the fire, according to Miller.
A relative of Procita has set up a GoFundMe account for the unlucky victim of the freak accident, describing the fire as devastating to a family that wasn’t insured against a house fire.
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