Weekly Weird News for 18 November 2022

Welcome to the end of another wacky week in the world. I found a number of followups on past stories because I enjoy finding out what happened after the headline fades away. And, we have some interesting bizarre natural observations that people are intent on attributing to supernatural or conspiratorial causes. So many want the world to be magical. The truth is, it IS magical in its own lovely way. You don’t need to discard reality for fiction. Enjoy this week’s roundup.

Followup: Fire caused by something else

In an update from last week, officials say a meteor was not the cause of a house fire in California. The fire coincided with people observing a fireball in the area and the man who owned the house was convinced that was the cause. But it didn’t make sense. Fireballs are actually not hot enough to cause a fire. https://www.kcra.com/article/no-meteor-found-debris-destroyed-nevada-county-home/41985670

Followup: Found foot

Back in August, I include on the WWN https://sharonahill.substack.com/p/weekly-weird-news-for-19-august-2022  the disturbing story of a foot found floating in the Abyss hot spring pool in Yellowstone. The person who died has been identified as a 70 yr old California man. Foul play is not suspected but the specific circumstances were not witnessed as far as officials know. https://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/foot-found-in-yellowstone-pool-belonged-to-california-man/article_ea7c62cf-fb00-55d3-9404-27b494daa56b.html

Followup: Sinkhole repair

The giant sinkhole in Chile that opened up in the summer (see WWN https://sharonahill.substack.com/p/weekly-weird-news-for-5-aug-2022) will be filled by the local mining company. It’s strongly suspected that the copper mine near the collapse was associated with the sinkhole formation. The mine was receiving water as well and has had to pump and seal off parts of the leaking mine pit. The ultimate cause is still under consideration. I would bet that the conclusion will not be straightforward. The mine has spent $10 million in repairs so far. Filling the hole will cost at least that much more. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/canadas-lundin-mining-fill-giant-mystery-chile-sinkhole-2022-11-17/

The third eye was blind

A Texas deer hunter downed a buck with a peculiar abscess on its face. The taxidermist preparing the head mount discovered the animal had grown an additional fully formed eye under the skin between the normal eye and nose. This is a very unusual manifestation! I tried to search for more info, but without the proper medical term as a keyword, my search resulted in no finds of a deer with a documented extra eye. Field & Stream contacted the National Deer Association who noted they had never encountered a case of a three-eyed deer before. If anyone has additional information on this condition, please share. There are plenty of pics associated with this latest example but they are not for the squeamish so be warned if you want to see what it looks like. https://www.fieldandstream.com/hunting/deer-with-three-eyes/

Abandoned alligators

A man in south-central Pennsylvania stopped to inspect a blue plastic crate left on the side of the road near the Susquehanna River. He found a 3 ft long alligator, barely alive. It snowed in the area later that day. The animal was in poor condition. A reptile rescuer collected the animal and it is now being properly treated with the hope it will survive its cruel ordeal. The rescue owner said he normally sees alligators of this size dumped because they have gotten too large to handle. No state permit is needed to keep alligators in PA, though some municipalities prohibit them as exotics or dangerous pets. https://www.pennlive.com/news/2022/11/alligator-left-inside-bin-on-side-of-the-road-in-dauphin-county.html and https://www.fox43.com/article/news/community/local-animal-rescue-says-an-alligator-in-dauphin-county-was-left-to-die-in-30-degree-weather-gator-malnourished-skinny-cold-bin/521-3e9b4977-8576-48df-9916-3bd4406e13ba

The alligator problem is also bad in Michigan where another article this week highlighted the issue of abandoned reptiles in Detroit. An undercover news investigation discovered the market for alligators and other exotics is robust. The animals’ lives are at risk by irresponsible ownership. They are kept under horrible conditions, are dumped, or escape. Again, there is no state law in Michigan either. https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/investigations/2022/11/14/going-undercover-to-expose-why-abandoned-alligators-are-being-found-around-metro-detroit/

Space boom

A secret space drone mission ended when the unmanned X-37B landed in Florida last week. Its reentry was deemed to be responsible for a sonic boom that rumbled Jacksonville to Orlando at 5:17 AM on November 12. The landing hadn’t been announced so people were shook up. https://www.sciencealert.com/mysterious-us-space-drone-returns-to-earth-after-record-breaking-mission and https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/sonic-booms-heard-in-florida-caused-by-space-forces-secret-x-37b-spaceplane-returning-to-earth

Sun Serpent

The European Space Agency's Solar Orbiter captured a strange sun phenomenon that resembles a snake slithering across the surface of the sun. Scientists’ current explanation is that a cooler tube of plasma among the hot plasma snaked its way across the sun. It’s twisted by the sun’s magnetic field. It’s interesting to think about this in association with the mythological stories of serpents related to the sun. It isn’t possible to have seen this incident unaided from the earth. But it’s fun to watch. https://www.sciencealert.com/this-insane-video-will-make-you-believe-theres-a-serpent-inside-the-sun

Raiders of the Lost drone footage

Officials from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and FBI entered the Nevada homes owned by Joerg Arnu in Las Vegas and Rachel on Nov. 3 and seized potential evidence for an undisclosed joint agency probe. Arnu runs a website that is focused on the secret military testing area people call Area 51. The raid is framed by Arnu and the UFO community as a way to silence the research. Maybe so because this is top-secret stuff. Arnu uses drones to capture imagery and one can assume he’s crossed a line too far. It’s got nothing to do with aliens but everything to do with national security. https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/military/air-force-fbi-raid-homes-in-probe-of-area-51-website-2677764/

Buy Forest Fenn’s treasure

The secret loot hidden for years and finally found by one intrepid soul (after MANY tried and failed, and some died) is up for auction. The cache consists of 476 gold pieces, coins, jewelry and other items. You can own a piece of Forest Fenn’s infamous treasure. https://www.ha.com/heritage-auctions-press-releases-and-news/heritage-auctions-opens-forrest-fenn-s-treasure-chest-to-collectors.s?releaseId=4616

Mysterious formations revealed

A drought in central China has revealed something strange in Dongting Lake in Hunan province. As in the US, record low water levels mean that features long hidden by water are now exposed. The freshwater Dongting Lake has on its floor, unusual square maze-like patterns. As these things usually go, people are quick to jump to a ridiculous conclusion by saying they were made my aliens or are secret portals, and other goofiness. I suspect some people are trying to be funny but you can’t underestimate what people really will believe. The more down-to-earth explanation is that they are ancient man-made structures called ai wei to catch or keep fish. https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/trending-china/article/3199676/definitely-aliens-drying-chinese-lake-bed-reveals-mysterious-patterns-which-officials-say-are-old

Be aware of new dubious news source

I keep tabs on many aggregators to find news for this dispatch. I’m seeing a trend of paranormal “news” sites linking to stories from a site called Exemplore. Often, self-reported stories to investigators are packaged as news even though the stories are unverified and some are likely completely manufactured and fake. But when placed on a site that is framed to be a “news” source, people share it as news and it gains legitimacy. This has been the way of the internet for a decade - I’ve seen it rise and proliferate. The Exemplore site is no different from other amateur sites that have contributing writers with an agenda to promote weird tales. The site gets clicks because it is further promoted by popular paranormal “news” aggregators like The Anomalist and Coast to Coast AM, among others. Over the years, there are more of these blog-type news sites and they overwhelm the content of the aggregators. My advice is to not trust such sites. They are almost entirely bogus. That’s why I focus on seeking out local news outlets or more reputable national outlets. Fringe stories from anywhere have a high probability of being inaccurate or outright faked but the likelihood of this is less when covered by real news outlets than for a dedicated paranormal site going for clicks. If you see stuff from sites like Exemplore, Phantoms and Monsters, or Mysterious Universe, be very wary. If you are interested in the story, follow through and search for other sources. It can be illuminating.