fireball
Residents in northeast Council Bluffs said they heard a large explosion two nights ago.

Roz, who said he didn't want to be identified for his personal safety, said footage he gave to 6 News captures the blast around 5:20 p.m. Wednesday.

"All the sudden, I heard this explosion and this concussion," he said. "It rattled the house."

Taking a closer look at the footage, you can see what appears to be a reflection of a fireball in a vehicle's windshield.


Roz wasn't the only one who told 6 News they witnessed it.

Sixteen-year-old Graysen Newton said he was driving home when he saw a fireball around 15 to 20 feet above him.

He said it was around the size of a basketball.

"It was super loud," Newton said.

He said it shook his car a little bit.

"I thought it was a firework at first, but it didn't explode or anything. It was just a ball of light."

Newton said he was driving down a hill along Spencer Avenue when the explosion happened.

Authorities said at this time, they don't have any answers for what it was.

In an email to 6 News, Council Bluffs police said they received a 911 call for a bright light and loud boom near Spencer Avenue shortly before 5:30 that evening.

A spokesperson went on to say, in part:

"Officers who responded did not write a report and went back in service with a disposition of 'Handled by Officer'. So, I don't believe they found anything concerning and we are not currently investigating anything related to this incident."

Roz said he feels it warrants more of an investigation.

"One neighbor that I discussed this with said that she lived here for quite some time and experienced transformer explosions," he said. "She said, 'Yeah, that certainly wasn't what this was. It was much larger, much brighter than that.'"

6 News reached out to MidAmerican Energy Friday evening about a possible transformer explosion in that area Wednesday. A spokesperson said they have no record of an issue near Spencer Avenue that day.

"Perhaps if it was someone messing with something, if it hadn't gone straight up, what if it would've hit someone's homes?" Roz said.

That's why he said he wants to get to the bottom of what this was. If other residents have footage of the explosion, he encourages them to come forward with it.