© T.J. Sinsay
Stars in the San Diego Skyline.
Stars in the San Diego Skyline.
San Diego County Sheriff's Department received several calls reporting something in the sky over State Route 52 at Mission Gorge in Santee.
Deputies checked the area where witnesses claimed to see something fall to the ground just before 5 a.m. They told NBC 7 there were no aircraft missing or overdue at the nearby Gillespie Field.
Heartland firefighters assisted in the search and said they are considering the reports unfounded, believing the object may have been a meteor. There are two meteor showers happening right now and visible from Southern California.
Comment: See also: Meteor explodes over Greece, panicked locals report fragments falling into sea
It's unlikely that anything actually 'fell into the sea'. If something had done so, everyone around the Med would be left in no doubt! (ie, a devastating tsunami would likely have resulted).
However, exploding and fragmenting fireballs can seem quite close to the ground, even as they're high up in the atmosphere.
Which isn't to say that they can't reach low enough to cause serious damage on the ground. Just look at Chelyabinsk, where 3,000 people were injured and most windows in the city were blown in.
Note also that this is the third or fourth report we've seen in the past fortnight of people noticing that
a.) this is a global phenomenon;
b.) the numbers of fireballs are increasing.
It may not be long before people become aware en masse and public perception shifts...