The odds of getting hit by a meteorite are astronomically slim, but tell that to a California man who claims a raging fireball destroyed his home.
“I heard a big bang. I started to smell smoke. I went out on my porch and it was completely on fire,” said Dustin Procita of Nevada County in rural Northern California. KCRA news.
The Penn Valley Fire Department responded to reports of a fire near Lake Englebright around 7:30 p.m. last Friday night. It took them about four hours to contain the fire, but Procita escaped alive. Unfortunately, his dog Tug was trapped in the house.
“They said it was a meteor. I used to watch meteor showers and stuff as a kid, but I was definitely not looking forward to landing them in my yard or through my roof,” Procita said.
Multiple videos of meteorite activity
Local residents reported seeing a bright ball fall from the sky and land in the same area as Procita’s home. Some of the sightings were captured on video.
Has anyone else seen this crazy flash light up the sky? Caught by my dashcam in El Dorado Hills, CA. pic.twitter.com/4BlzOB5ISD
— Derek Schnell (@DerekKCRA) Nov 5, 2022
Meteorites are small rock fragments from asteroids that fall to Earth. When meteorites enter Earth’s atmosphere, they burn and turn into fireballs or “shooting stars,” called meteors.
Yes, I captured it on my dashcam too. pic.twitter.com/1L3kZH05sG
— Jason Berry (@jberry7777) Nov 5, 2022
There have been very few instances where meteorites have actually struck a person. In 1954, an Alabama woman named Ann Hodges was napping on her couch when a meteorite ripped through her ceiling and hit her side.
Procita says he’s lucky he’s still alive.
“They say it’s a one in 4 trillion chance. I think I might buy a lottery ticket today.”
The fire service is still investigating the cause of the fire and should know more in a few weeks.