Strange Evidence (2017–…): Season 2, Episode 10 - Curse of the Monster Spider - full transcript
A massive spider's web takes over a park, and experts investigate if this monster's trap could capture a human. A tree spurts out thick red blood, and some believe it could be an undiscovered species of carnivorous plant.
[ ELECTRONIC WHIRRING ]
Narrator: WORLDWIDE, SIX BILLION
CAMERAS ARE WATCHING US...
ON OUR STREETS, AT WORK, AND IN OUR HOMES.
THEY CAPTURE THINGS THAT SEEM IMPOSSIBLE.
IT DEFIES THE LAWS OF PHYSICS.
Man: AH, THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE, MAN.
Narrator: EXPERTS CARRY
OUT FORENSIC ANALYSIS
OF THESE UNUSUAL EVENTS.
THERE'S GOT TO BE SOME
EXPLANATION FOR WHAT'S GOING ON.
[ WOMEN SHOUTING ] [ CRASH, HORN HONKS ]
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
[ SCREAMING ] Narrator: COMING UP,
A CITY STREET IS SWALLOWED WHOLE.
IN THAT INSTANT, IT WAS GONE.
YOU KNOW, IN ONE SECOND.
[ LOUD CRASH, SCREAMING ]
IT'S DISTURBING TO WATCH.
Narrator: AN EIGHT-LEGGED INVASION.
400 FOOT LONG WALL OF WEB.
YOU CAN'T ESCAPE.
Narrator: IS MAN ON THE MENU?
I JUST THOUGHT THAT THEY WILL EAT ME ALIVE.
I KNOW THEY WILL.
AND AN UNWELCOME VISITOR FROM ABOVE.
ALL OF A SUDDEN, BOOM!
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
JUST ANOTHER COUPLE OF FEET,
AND THESE TWO WOULD'VE BEEN ON ICE.
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ] [ BURSTING ]
Narrator: BIZARRE PHENOMENA...
MYSTERIES CAUGHT ON CAMERA.
WHAT IS THE TRUTH BEHIND
THIS "STRANGE EVIDENCE"?
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
A TEXAS PARK IS ENGULFED IN A MEGA-WEB.
400 FOOT LONG WALL OF WEB.
YOU CAN'T ESCAPE. HOW TERRIFYING?
♪♪
Kays: WHAT KIND OF PREY
ARE THEY TRYING TO CATCH?
COULD A DEER GET STUCK
IN THAT? COULD A PERSON?
Narrator: LOCALS FEAR
AN EIGHT-LEGGED INVADER
HAS DEVELOPED A TASTE FOR HUMAN FLESH.
MY BIGGEST FEAR WAS BEING
EATEN ALIVE BY A SPIDER.
♪♪
[ STATIC BLIPS ]
♪♪
LAKE TAWAKONI STATE PARK, TEXAS...
A QUIET, RURAL RETREAT
JUST 50 MILES WEST OF DALLAS.
[ VARIOUS ANIMAL CALLS ]
AUGUST 6, 2007.
PARK RANGER FREDDIE
GOWIN IS CHECKING A TRAIL
WHEN HE STUMBLES ON A
VISION FROM A NIGHTMARE.
I CAME AROUND THIS ONE CORNER,
I SAW THE STRANGEST THING
I'VE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE.
Narrator: A GIGANTIC SPIDERWEB
SPREAD RIGHT ACROSS THE TRAIL.
I THOUGHT I GOT CAUGHT UP
IN A SCI-FI MOVIE OR SOMETHING.
Narrator: THE SINISTER WEB
TOWERS OVER 40 FEET HIGH
AND SPREADS STICKY THREADS
HUNDREDS OF FEET ACROSS.
♪♪
Woman: IT WAS TERRIFYING.
IT WOULD SCARE YOU TO DEATH.
♪♪
Gowin: WHAT SCARED ME
WAS IT COULD TAKE OVER
AND TOTALLY DESTROY THE PARK.
♪♪
Kays: THE FIRST THING I WONDERED
WHEN I SAW ALL THIS SPIDERWEB WAS,
IS IT FROM ONE GIANT SPIDER?
♪♪
[ WHIRRING ]
Narrator: ZOOLOGIST ROLAND KAYS
FEARS THE WORLD'S BIGGEST SPIDER
HAS MADE ITSELF AT HOME IN TEXAS.
THE LARGEST SPIDER IN THE WORLD
IS CALLED THE GIANT HUNTSMAN,
AND IT'S SO BIG THAT IF
YOU STRETCH ITS LEGS OUT,
IT CAN BE UP TO A FOOT LONG.
Narrator: THE GIANT HUNTSMAN IS JUST ONE
OF A LARGE GROUP OF
CARNIVOROUS HUNTSMAN SPIDERS.
THEY USE THEIR VENOM
TO FEED ON COCKROACHES,
AND IN THIS FOOTAGE, A MOUSE.
[ SIREN WAILING ]
BUT SOME SPIDERS ALSO ATTACK HUMANS,
THEIR BITE CAUSING NECROSIS,
DEATH OF HUMAN CELLS.
Woman: OH, HA HA HA. SEND HELP.
Narrator: ONE AGGRESSIVE HUNTSMAN SPIDER
EVEN TRAPS THIS AUSTRALIAN
WOMAN IN HER HOME.
THOSE ARE VERY, VERY DANGEROUS SPIDERS.
YOU DON'T WISH TO HAVE ONE OF THOSE
END UP IN YOUR SLEEPING BAG.
[ SPIDER SCREECHING ]
♪♪
Narrator: BUT SPIDER EXPERT KEVIN KASKY
FINDS A FLAW IN KAYS' HUNTSMAN HUNCH.
THE HUNTSMAN ISN'T A WEB SLINGER.
THEY DON'T CREATE A WEB
BECAUSE THEY ARE WHAT
WE CALL ACTIVE HUNTERS.
THEY RUN AFTER THEIR PREY.
Narrator: KASKY SUSPECTS THAT THE CULPRIT
MIGHT BE A SPIDER THAT
KILLS NOT WITH VENOM,
BUT WITH THE STUNNING
STRANGULATING STRENGTH
OF ITS WEB.
♪♪
DARWIN'S BARK SPIDER MAKES THE BIGGEST WEB,
MEASURED AT 25 METERS OR ABOUT 82 FEET.
Narrator: DARWIN'S BARK SPIDERWEB
IS THE STRONGEST BIOLOGICAL
MATERIAL EVER STUDIED.
[ GUNSHOT ]
TEN TIMES TOUGHER THAN KEVLAR,
ONE OF ITS 30-SQUARE-FOOT WEBS
COULD SUPPORT A TWO-TON FAMILY CAR
OR EASILY TRAP A HUMAN VICTIM.
I DON'T THINK I'D WANT TO
COME ACROSS ONE OF THOSE
IN A DARK PASSAGE
'CAUSE I DON'T THINK I'D
GET OUT OF THEIR WEB.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT BIOLOGIST KELLY PRICE
SPOTS A CLUE IN THE FOOTAGE
THAT SUGGESTS THE WEB CAN'T BE THE WORK
OF THE DARWIN BARK SPIDER.
WEBS ARE USUALLY BUILT SOLITARILY
AND TO A VERY ORGANIZED PATTERN,
BUT HERE WE SEE A MISHMASH
OF A WHOLE BUNCH OF DIFFERENT WEBS
IN NO ORGANIZED PATTERN WHATSOEVER.
Narrator: THIS LEADS EXPERTS
TO AN ALARMING DISCOVERY.
THE MONSTROUS TANGLE OF SPIDER SILK
HASN'T BEEN SPUN BY A
SINGLE GIANT SPECIMEN.
THIS PARK HAS BECOME THE DOMAIN OF AN ARMY
OF THOUSANDS OF WEB-SPINNING ARACHNIDS.
WE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT KIND OF SPIDER IT WAS.
THAT'S THE SCARIEST PART.
♪♪
Narrator: WHAT THEY FEAR MOST IS A PACK
OF THE LONE STAR STATE'S
DEADLIEST NATIVE SPIDER...
THE BLACK WIDOW.
ONE BITE CAN KILL A HUMAN.
♪♪
BLACK WIDOW SPIDERS
KILL SEVEN PEOPLE IN THE U.S. EACH YEAR.
SO TO SEE THIS MANY SPIDERS
ALL WORKING TOGETHER
IS KIND OF TERRIFYING.
♪♪
Narrator: BLACK WIDOW
VENOM IS 15 TIMES STRONGER
THAN A RATTLESNAKE.
ALTHOUGH SOLITARY, THEY
DO SOCIALIZE IN MATING SEASON,
AND THIS IS BLACK WIDOW MATING SEASON.
♪♪
FEMALE BLACK WIDOWS
KILL MALES AFTER MATING.
COULD THESE HOMICIDAL FEMALES
BE TURNING THEIR VIOLENT DATING
METHODS TOWARDS BIGGER PREY?
♪♪
WHEN YOU SEE A SPIDERWEB THIS BIG,
YOU WONDER, WHAT KIND OF
PREY ARE THEY TRYING TO CATCH?
HOW BIG OF A PREY? COULD
A DEER GET STUCK IN THAT?
COULD A PERSON?
♪♪
[ BIRDS CHIRPING ]
Narrator: SPIDER EXPERT MIKE QUINN
STEPS UP TO THE CHALLENGE.
BUT WHEN HE EXAMINES THE MASSIVE WEB,
HE SPOTS SOMETHING INCREDIBLE.
Quinn: THERE ARE AT LEAST
16 SPECIES OF SPIDERS
LIVING IN THE WEB.
Narrator: SPECIES OF SPIDER
THAT WOULD NORMALLY FIGHT TO THE DEATH
ARE WORKING TOGETHER.
♪♪
Quinn: MOST SPIDERS ARE TERRITORIAL,
SO HAVING ALL THESE
DIFFERENT SPIDERS ALL TOGETHER
WAS REALLY UNUSUAL.
Kasky: SPIDERS ARE NOT
NORMALLY SOCIAL INSECTS.
THE ONLY TIME THAT THEY
ENJOY OTHER SPIDERS' COMPANY
IS WHEN IT'S TIME FOR DINNER,
AND USUALLY MEANING THAT
THEY'VE INVITED THEM OVER
TO BE THE DINNER.
♪♪
Narrator: ARACHNIDS HAVE
A FEROCIOUS APPETITE.
[ SQUIRMING ] SCIENTISTS ESTIMATE
THE GLOBAL SPIDER POPULATION
EATS UP TO 800 MILLION
TONS OF PREY EACH YEAR.
THESE EIGHT-LEGGED PREDATORS
COULD EAT EVERY HUMAN ON EARTH
AND STILL HAVE ROOM FOR DESSERT.
I JUST THOUGHT THEY'RE
GONNA ATTACK ALL AT ONE TIME.
THEY WILL EAT ME ALIVE, I KNOW THEY WILL.
♪♪
[ TRILLING, CAMERA WHIRS ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
EXPERTS RACE TO DISCOVER
WHAT THESE FLESH-EATING
SPIDERS ARE FEEDING ON.
IT RAISES THE QUESTION, WHY
DID THEY BUILD ONE MASSIVE WEB?
Narrator: AND A CITY STREET SWALLOWS CARS.
[ SCREAMING ]
Proctor: THE CARS MOVE AND THEY DISAPPEAR,
AND THE PEOPLE, THEY'RE IN SHOCK.
[ STATIC BLIPS ]
Narrator: A MONSTER WEB IN A TEXAS PARK
IS PACKED WITH A SKIN-CRAWLING
ASSORTMENT OF SPIDERS.
IT'S NOT NORMAL BEHAVIOR
TO HAVE SPIDERS ON TOP OF SPIDERS.
♪♪
Narrator: WITH AN ARMORED EXOSKELETON,
TOXIC VENOM, AND EIGHT-EYED SPIDEY SENSES,
THE ONLY THING STOPPING
SPIDERS FROM WORLD DOMINATION
IS THAT MOST OF THEM
OPERATE AS LONE WOLVES,
UNTIL NOW.
[ EERIE MUSIC ]
IT RAISES THE QUESTION,
WHY ARE THESE SPIDERS
CONGREGATING ALL TOGETHER,
AND WHY DID THEY BUILD ONE MASSIVE WEB?
[ BEEPING ]
♪♪
Narrator: ZOOLOGIST ROLAND
KAYS REEXAMINES THE FOOTAGE
AND DISCOVERS A CLUE
TO THE SPIDER BEHAVIOR.
VAST NUMBERS OF SMALL FLIES CALLED MIDGES
HAVE BEEN CAUGHT IN THE WEB.
IF THERE'S LOTS TO EAT,
THEIR POPULATIONS CAN GROW REALLY QUICKLY
AND THAT SEEMS TO BE
WHAT HAPPENED IN THIS CASE.
Lovell: IT'S KIND OF A
SPIDER FEEDING FRENZY.
WITH ALL THESE MIDGES IN THE AIR,
ALL THE SPIDERS HAVE
COME INTO THIS ONE AREA
TO CATCH THEM ALL WHILE THEY CAN.
Narrator: THE WORRY FOR LOCAL TEXANS IS,
WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN THE
SPIDERS RUN OUT OF MIDGES?
[ SQUISHING ]
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
IN THE HOMETOWN OF HORROR
WRITER EDGAR ALLAN POE,
THE EARTH OPENS UP AND
SWALLOWS A U.S. CITY STREET.
[ SCREAMING ]
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
IT BRINGS DOWN ALL THE CARS,
MUCH OF THE PAVEMENT,
THE LIGHT POSTS, THE FENCE.
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
BAM! THE CARS MOVE AND THEY DISAPPEAR,
AND THE PEOPLE, THEY'RE IN SHOCK.
Narrator: ARE SECRET TUNNELS
COLLAPSING BENEATH BALTIMORE
THREATENING THE ENTIRE CITY?
THIS IS KIND OF LIKE WATCHING A DISASTER
HAPPENING IN SLOW MOTION.
[ SCREAMING ]
[ LOUD CRASH ]
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
♪♪
Narrator: BALTIMORE, MARYLAND...
HOME TO OVER 600,000 PEOPLE.
AT THE HEART OF THE
300-YEAR-OLD HISTORIC CITY
IS CHARLES VILLAGE.
APRIL 30, 2014, EAST 26th STREET.
BENEATH THE PRETTY NEIGHBORHOOD,
AN ANCIENT GODZILLA-LIKE
MONSTER APPEARS TO BE AWAKENING.
[ LOW GROWL ]
Reyes: THERE WAS A LOT OF PEOPLE OUTSIDE.
I CAME OUT AND NOTICED ACROSS THE STREET
WAS SINKING IN FARTHER AND FARTHER.
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
Narrator: THE TERRIFYING
FOOTAGE STUNS INVESTIGATORS.
Proctor: WHAT IS GOING ON?
BECAUSE YOU DON'T NORMALLY
SEE THE EARTH SWALLOWING UP CARS.
THE WHOLE STREET STARTED TO
CAVE IN AND SINK DOWN SLOWLY.
♪♪
[ SCREAMING ] Woman: OH, MY GOD.
[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]
[ LOUD CRASH ]
Narrator: EAST 26th STREET
COLLAPSES INTO THE GULLY BELOW.
THAT INSTANT, IT WAS GONE.
[ SCREAMING ]
I LOST MY CAR
AND THEN I JUST HAD TO
STAND THERE AND WATCH IT FALL.
[ LOUD CRASH ]
[ PANICKED CHATTERING ]
Narrator: RESIDENTS FEAR THE WORST.
Reyes: WE DIDN'T KNOW IF THE
ENTIRE STREET WAS GONNA FALL.
WE DIDN'T KNOW IF OUR
HOUSES WERE GONNA FALL IN.
WE REALLY DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WAS GOING ON.
Di Bartolo: HOW CAN
SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAPPEN?
IT'S DISTURBING TO WATCH.
[ SCREAMING ]
[ LOUD CRASH ]
[ CAMERA WHIRRING ]
♪♪
Narrator: ONE LOCAL BELIEVES HE KNOWS
WHAT CAUSED THE COLLAPSE,
AND IT MAY PROVIDE HARD EVIDENCE
FOR A CHILLING LOCAL LEGEND
THAT A HAUNTED TUNNEL
SYSTEM LIES BENEATH BALTIMORE.
I'VE BEEN IN BALTIMORE MY WHOLE LIFE.
THERE'S ALL KINDS OF TUNNELS
THAT HAVE BEEN BUILT THROUGH THE YEARS,
GOING BACK TO THE CIVIL WAR.
Katsikides: GROWING UP IN BALTIMORE,
I HEARD LOTS OF FOLKLORE ABOUT THE TUNNELS
AND HOW THEY MIGHT
HAVE BEEN USED IN THE PAST.
Lovell: THE QUESTION IS,
WAS THIS CAR-EATING EVENT
ON 26th STREET CAUSED BY ONE OF
THESE SECRET TUNNELS COLLAPSING?
[ LOUD CRASH ] [ WOMAN SCREAMS ]
♪♪
Narrator: ALTHOUGH OLD TIMERS TELL TALES
OF BALTIMORE'S HONEYCOMB OF TUNNELS,
MOST RESIDENTS BELIEVE THEY
WERE NOTHING BUT FOLKLORE.
THAT WAS, UNTIL THE 1950s,
WHEN CONSTRUCTION WORKERS
REBUILDING LEXINGTON MARKET
DISCOVER A LONG-FORGOTTEN SECRET DOORWAY.
WE'RE IN THE SUN NOW.
♪♪
Narrator: GUIDE MARTHA WISE
HOLDS THE ONLY KEY TO THIS VAULT
AND KNOWS SUBTERRANEAN
BALTIMORE BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE.
Wise: AROUND 1951,
THEY DISCOVERED THE ENTRANCE
TO THE UNDERGROUND VAULTS
THAT HAD BEEN FORGOTTEN
FOR WHO KNOWS HOW LONG.
♪♪
Narrator: ACCORDING TO LEGEND,
THE SUBTERRANEAN NETWORK
RUNS FROM THE WASHINGTON
MONUMENT IN THE CITY CENTER
TO FORT McHENRY, TWO
MILES AWAY ON THE COAST.
[ CANNON FIRES ] IT IS
SAID AMERICAN SOLDIERS
IN THE BATTLE OF
BALTIMORE... [ HORSE WHINNIES ]
...USED THEM TO THWART
A BRITISH INVASION IN 1812,
A TRIUMPH THAT INSPIRED FRANCIS SCOTT KEY
TO WRITE "THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER."
♪♪
SOME BELIEVE THE GHOSTS
OF THE 19th CENTURY SOLDIERS
STILL STALK THESE TUNNELS.
THOUGH MANY DISMISS THE PASSAGEWAYS
AS FIGMENTS OF THE IMAGINATION,
WISE BEGS TO DIFFER.
Wise: THERE VERY EASILY COULD
BE MORE TUNNELS DOWN HERE.
OVER HERE IS SOMETHING VERY INTERESTING.
WE DO INDEED HAVE EVIDENCE OF A TUNNEL
BEHIND THIS WALL.
IT'S NOW CONCRETED OVER.
♪♪
Narrator: IF WISE IS RIGHT,
THE TUNNELS DUG OUT BY HAND
NOW SUPPORT AREAS OF A CITY
WITH MORE THAN 30 SKYSCRAPERS.
IF THEY'RE BEGINNING TO COLLAPSE,
THE WHOLE CITY IS IN DANGER.
Woman: OH, MY GOD! [ SCREAMING ]
THIS IS KIND OF LIKE WATCHING A DISASTER
HAPPENING IN SLOW MOTION.
[ SCREAMING ]
[ LOUD CRASH ]
[ TRILLING, CAMERA WHIRS ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
AN ENORMOUS BLOCK OF ICE
DROPS OUT OF A CLEAR LONDON SKY.
WHERE COULD THIS MASSIVE
CHUNK OF ICE OF COME FROM?
Narrator: AND INVESTIGATORS IN
THE BALTIMORE STREET COLLAPSE...
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
...GET THAT SINKING FEELING.
LANDSLIDES USUALLY DON'T JUST HAPPEN.
THEY NEED A TRIGGER.
[ STATIC BLIPS ]
[ SCREAMING ]
Narrator: COULD A NETWORK
OF CIVIL WAR PASSAGEWAYS
BE TO BLAME FOR THE
BALTIMORE STREET COLLAPSE?
♪♪
[ WHIRRING ]
♪♪
ACCORDING TO LOCAL LEGEND,
SECRET TUNNELS RUN FROM
THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT
IN THE CITY CENTER TO
FORT McHENRY ON THE COAST.
BUT IF THAT'S THE CASE,
THEY DON'T PASS BENEATH EAST 26th STREET.
THERE ARE NO MAJOR TUNNELS
IN THIS PARTICULAR AREA,
SO SOMETHING ELSE MUST
HAVE CAUSED THIS EVENT.
Narrator: PLANETARY SCIENTIST SIAN PROCTOR
STUDIES FOOTAGE OF THE COLLAPSE.
SHE SPOTS A DETAIL THAT
LEADS HER TO A FRESH THEORY
ABOUT WHAT CAUSED THE
RETAINING WALL TO FAIL.
Proctor: WHEN WE LOOK AT THE
METEOROLOGICAL RECORDS,
THE EAST COAST WAS JUST
GETTING HAMMERED BY RAIN.
Narrator: MOTHER NATURE DUMPED
NEARLY FOUR INCHES OF RAIN
IN AN HOUR.
THAT'S THE SECOND LARGEST
IN RECORDED HISTORY.
A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF RAIN.
Narrator: THE TORRENTIAL DOWNPOUR
OVERWHELMS THE CITY DRAINS
AND SATURATES THE GROUND.
IF YOU SUDDENLY COMBINE
WATER WITH DIRT, WHAT HAPPENS?
IT TURNS INTO MUD, IT
LIQUEFIES, AND THE MUD MOVES.
AND MUD MOVES DOWNHILL.
[ SCREAMING ]
Proctor: WHEN I LOOK AT THIS VIDEO,
I AM ABSOLUTELY SEEING A LANDSLIDE.
♪♪
Narrator: LANDSLIDES CAUSE
WIDESPREAD DESTRUCTION,
KILLING UP TO 50 PEOPLE
IN THE U.S. EACH YEAR
AND COSTING $3.5 BILLION.
THE LARGEST EVER RECORDED
STRUCK MOUNT ST. HELENS,
WASHINGTON STATE, IN MAY 1980,
SHIFTING ENOUGH DEBRIS TO
FILL 250 MILLION DUMP TRUCKS.
[ BEEPING ]
PROCTOR BELIEVES EAST
26th STREET'S CONSTRUCTION
ABOVE THE RAIL LINE SEALED ITS FATE.
WHEN THE GROUND BECOMES SUPER SATURATED,
THAT CAN TRIGGER A LANDSLIDE,
AND THIS IS WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE.
♪♪
Narrator: PROCTOR THINKS
THAT MUD HAD BEEN BUILDING UP
AGAINST THE RETAINING WALL.
THE RAINWATER TURNED
THE MUD TO HEAVIER LIQUID,
WHICH CAUSED THE WALL
TO BUCKLE, THEN COLLAPSE,
BRINGING DOWN THE STREET WITH IT.
THIS AMAZING AMOUNT OF
RAINFALL IS LITERALLY THE STRAW
THAT BROKE THE RETAINING WALL'S BACK.
Narrator: ONCE AGAIN,
NATURE OVERPOWERS A MANMADE STRUCTURE,
MIRACULOUSLY INJURING NO ONE.
[ LOUD CRASH ]
♪♪
ALTHOUGH THIS COLLAPSE
HASN'T UNCOVERED
BALTIMORE'S LEGENDARY TUNNELS,
LOCALS HAVEN'T GIVEN UP HOPE
THAT ONE DAY THEY WILL BE DISCOVERED.
BALTIMORE IS STILL HOLDING SOME SECRETS
VERY CLOSE TO ITS CHEST
AND IT WILL SHOW THEM
TO US WHEN IT'S READY.
♪♪
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
Narrator: NOW, A SLEEPY SUBURBAN STREET
RECEIVES AN UNWELCOME VISITOR FROM ABOVE.
ALL OF A SUDDEN, BAM!
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
SOMETHING FALLS FROM THE SKY.
Narrator: IT LEAVES
LOCALS FROZEN WITH FEAR.
JUST A FEW FEET FURTHER
OVER, I WOULD BE DEAD.
Narrator: AND A COLD CASE TO BE SOLVED.
Price: COULD THIS BE SOME TYPE
OF EXTREME WEATHER EVENT
WITH SUPER-SIZED HAILSTONES
SMASHING THE STREETS OF LONDON?
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
[ WHIRRING ]
[ ICE CRACKS ]
♪♪
Narrator: FEBRUARY 7,
2018, LONDON, ENGLAND...
THREE MILLION LONDONERS
START THE WORKING DAY.
AMONG THEM IS DENTIST HOWARD STEAN.
THERE WAS A WHISTLING
SOUND AS IF A BOMB WAS FALLING.
Narrator: A CAMERA
CAPTURES A SHOCKING EVENT.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
ALL OF A SUDDEN, BOOM, SOMETHING GIANT
COMES CRASHING DOWN ON 'EM.
Narrator: AN ENORMOUS BLOCK
OF ICE EXPLODES ON THE GROUND
JUST FEET FROM TWO UNSUSPECTING MEN.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
THAT GUY CAME SO CLOSE TO GETTING ICED.
[ TRILLING, CAMERA WHIRS ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
AN UNIDENTIFIED LIGHT
SPELLS DISASTER FOR A CITY.
THEY MUST HAVE LOOKED UP AND THOUGHT,
"THIS IS THE END OF THE WORLD."
Narrator: AND THE ICE BOMB
INVESTIGATION GETS A LIFT.
WE'RE AT 140 MILES AN
HOUR, AND THERE WE GO.
♪♪
[ BEEPING ]
Narrator: AN ICE BOMB
FALLS OUT OF A CLEAR-BLUE LONDON SKY.
IT IS A MIRACLE THAT NOBODY WAS HIT.
JUST A FEW FEET FURTHER
OVER, I WOULD BE DEAD.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
[ TRILLING ]
Narrator: THIS ISN'T THE FIRST CASE
OF UNEXPECTED THINGS FALLING FROM THE SKY.
IN 1954, A WOMAN IN ALABAMA
WAS STRUCK BY A GRAPEFRUIT-SIZE METEORITE
THAT CRASHED THROUGH HER ROOF.
SHE LIVED TO TELL THE TALE,
UNLIKE THE UNFORTUNATE BOY IN TURKEY
WHO WAS KILLED BY A GOAT
THAT FELL OFF A BUILDING.
EX-NYPD VIDEO ANALYST CONOR McCOURT
STUDIES THE SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE
TO WORK OUT THE SIZE OF THE
MYSTERIOUS FALLING ICE BLOCK.
WE HAVE THINGS THAT WE CAN COMPARE IT TO.
WE HAVE PEOPLE IN THE FOREGROUND HERE,
AND WE CAN USE THAT AS
A BASE. [ CAMERA WHIRS ]
IT'S ABOUT THE WIDTH OF A HUMAN BEING.
[ BEEP ]
Narrator: McCOURT CALCULATES
THAT AN ICE BLOCK THAT SIZE
WOULD WEIGH AROUND 45 POUNDS.
WOW, 45 POUNDS!
THAT'S LIKE A MICROWAVE
SMASHING ON TOP OF YOUR HEAD.
WHERE COULD THIS MASSIVE
CHUNK OF ICE HAVE COME FROM?
[ SHATTERING ] Narrator:
IN FREEZING CLIMATES,
FALLING ICE IS A KNOWN HAZARD.
IN THE UNITED STATES,
ABOUT 15 PEOPLE ARE KILLED
BY ICICLE-RELATED ACCIDENTS EACH YEAR.
BUT WITH NO ICE AND
SNOW IN LONDON THAT DAY,
EXPERTS RACE TO DISCOVER THE
SOURCE OF THIS LETHAL MISSILE
BEFORE SOMEONE ELSE IS HIT
BY AN ICE BOMB FROM THE SKY.
COULD THIS BE SOME TYPE
OF EXTREME WEATHER EVENT?
Narrator: AVIATION EXPERT JOE PAPPALARDO
STUDIES THE LOCATION
AND DISCOVERS THE NEAR-DEATH ICE EVENT
OCCURRED DIRECTLY UNDER
A FLIGHT PATH TO HEATHROW,
ONE OF THE WORLD'S BUSIEST AIRPORTS.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE FLIGHT RECORDS,
YOU SEE THAT THERE WAS AN
AIRPLANE THAT FLEW OVERHEAD
NOT SO LONG BEFORE THIS ICE BALL DROPPED.
[ AIRPLANE ENGINE ROARS ]
Narrator: 3,000 AIRCRAFT SWOOP
LOW OVER LONDON EVERY DAY,
AND THINGS DO OCCASIONALLY
FALL OUT OF INBOUND AIRCRAFT.
IN 2015, POLICE DISCOVERED
A BODY ON THE ROOF
OF A BUILDING TWO MILES FROM HERE.
HE'S IDENTIFIED AS A STOWAWAY
ON A FLIGHT FROM SOUTH AFRICA.
USUALLY, THESE STOWAWAYS
TRY TO STOW AWAY ON, SAY,
THE LANDING GEAR ON THE
OUTSIDE OF AN AIRPLANE CABIN.
USUALLY, THEY PASS OUT
BECAUSE UP ABOVE 25,000 FEET,
THE OXYGEN IS SO THIN THAT
YOU CAN'T STAY CONSCIOUS.
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS BELIEVE
THE MAN TRAGICALLY FELL FROM THE PLANE
WHEN THE LANDING GEAR LOWERED.
LOVELL BELIEVES THE CHUNK OF
ICE ALSO DROPPED FROM A PLANE.
Lovell: WHILE FROZEN HUMAN
BODIES FALLING FROM PLANES
IS QUITE RARE, THERE HAVE
BEEN A NUMBER OF CASES
OF BLUE ICE FALLING FROM PLANES.
BLUE ICE IS THE TERM THAT
PEOPLE USE FOR LATRINE WATER
THAT IS DROPPED FROM AN AIRPLANE.
Narrator: AIRPLANE TOILET
WATER IS BLUE IN COLOR.
IF IT LEAKS FROM THE AIRCRAFT,
IT FREEZES IN THE SUBZERO
TEMPERATURES AT HIGH ALTITUDE,
FORMING A SOLID BOMB THAT
PLUMMETS TO THE GROUND.
[ BOMBS WHISTLE, EXPLOSION ]
WHAT A WAY TO DIE,
BEING HIT BY A HUGE BALL
OF PLANE TOILET WASTE.
AIRPLANES AREN'T FLYING AROUND
OPENING UP THE LAVATORY DOORS
AND DROPPING HUMAN
WASTE ALL OVER THE PLACE.
THAT'S NOT HOW THAT WORKS AT ALL.
BLUE ICE OCCURS WHEN
THERE'S A LEAK IN THOSE SYSTEMS
AND IT'S A VERY RARE ACCIDENT.
Narrator: BUT IMAGE ANALYST McCOURT
NOTICES SOMETHING IN THE CLIP
THAT CHALLENGES THE BLUE ICE THEORY.
McCourt: LOOKING AT THE COLOR OF
THE OBJECT THAT HITS THE GROUND,
IT'S VERY WHITE.
WHEN THEY HAVE AIRLINE DISCHARGE,
IT'S USUALLY ACCOMPANIED
BY SOME BLUE CHEMICAL.
WE'RE NOT SEEING THAT HERE.
[ TRILLING, CAMERA WHIRRING ]
Narrator: PLANETARY SCIENTIST SIAN PROCTOR
BELIEVES A FREAK WEATHER
EVENT IS A POSSIBLE EXPLANATION.
THE FIRST THING THAT COMES TO MIND IS HAIL.
Narrator: MOST HAILSTONES ARE PEA-SIZED.
[ HAIL CRASHING DOWN ]
BUT SOMETIMES SUPER-SIZED
STONES PLUMMET TO THE EARTH.
THE LARGEST HAILSTONE EVER
RECORDED IN THE UNITED STATES
WAS IN SOUTH DAKOTA IN 2010.
IT WAS JUST UNDER TWO
POUNDS, EIGHT INCHES ACROSS.
IT WAS THE SIZE OF A GRAPEFRUIT.
[ SHATTERING ]
Narrator: METEOROLOGIST CHRIS BELL
HAS SEEN THE DEVASTATING
EFFECT OF GIANT HAILSTONES.
♪♪
THERE'S BEEN INSTANCES
IN AMERICA AND IN AFRICA
WHERE HERDS OF CATTLE HAVE BEEN WIPED OUT
BY A LARGE HAIL STORM,
SO THEY CAN POTENTIALLY BE DEADLY.
Narrator: BUT BELL FINDS A
HOLE IN THE HAIL THEORY.
Bell: WHEN YOU GET HAIL,
YOU'RE NOT JUST GONNA GET
ONE OR TWO HAILSTONES FALLING.
YOU'RE GONNA GET LOTS
OF HAILSTONES FALLING.
SO JUST SEEING ONE MASSIVE
CHUNK OF ICE HIT THE GROUND,
THAT ALMOST RULES OUT
THE POTENTIAL OF HAIL.
[ CAMERA WHIRS ]
Narrator: METEOROLOGIST CHRIS WALCEK
EXAMINES THE LATEST ACADEMIC RESEARCH
AND COMES ACROSS A FRIGHTENING POSSIBILITY.
THIS ICE BOMB HAS THE
HALLMARKS OF A MEGACRYOMETEOR.
A MEGACRYOMETEOR IS A
VERY LARGE PIECE OF ICE,
LARGER THAN ANY KNOWN HAILSTONE,
FALLING OUT OF THE SKY
UNDER CLEAR SKY CONDITIONS.
THE FORMATION MECHANISM
IS NOT TOO WELL UNDERSTOOD.
Narrator: SOME SCIENTISTS
BELIEVE THE ORIGINS
OF THESE MYSTERIOUS ICE
BOMBS ARE EXTRATERRESTRIAL.
Walcek: MAYBE IT'S THE CORE OF AN ICY COMET
THAT RE-ENTERED THE ATMOSPHERE
AND THIS IS THE PIECE OF WHAT SURVIVED.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
COMETS ARE SOMETIMES
MANY KILOMETERS ACROSS.
IF YOU HAVE A BIG BALL OF ICE
HITTING THE EARTH AT HUGE SPEED,
IT'S GONNA DO A LOT OF DAMAGE.
[ EXPLOSION ]
Narrator: OTHER SCIENTISTS BELIEVE
THAT THE LETHAL MEGACRYOMETEORS
ARE AN EXTREME WEATHER
EVENT IN THE TROPOPAUSE,
MILES ABOVE THE EARTH.
BUT THE MYSTERY IS HOW A GIANT
BLOCK OF ICE CAN GROW SO BIG.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
IN ORDER TO HOLD A 45-POUND HUNK OF ICE
UP IN THE ATMOSPHERE,
YOU WOULD NEED A HUGE
UPDRAFT CARRYING VERY MOIST AIR
UP TO COLDER REGIONS OF THE
ATMOSPHERE WHERE IT FREEZES.
♪♪
Narrator: METEOROLOGIST CHRIS
BELL DESIGNS AN EXPERIMENT
TO FIND OUT WHAT WIND SPEED
WOULD BE NEEDED ABOVE LONDON
TO KEEP A 45-POUND BLOCK
OF ICE SUSPENDED IN THE AIR
BEFORE CRASHING DOWN TO EARTH. ALL RIGHT.
WE'RE TURNING ON THE WIND TUNNEL NOW
AND WE'RE GONNA BE SIMULATING WIND SPEEDS
OF UP TO 30 TO 40 MILES PER HOUR,
WHICH IS GALE FORCE WINDS.
AND, AT THE MOMENT, THE
BLOCK OF ICE IS NOT MOVING.
Narrator: BELL CRANKS UP THE WIND MACHINE.
WE'RE AT 140 MILES AN
HOUR, AND THERE WE GO.
WE CAN SEE THE BLOCK OF ICE
IS NOW BEING LIFTED INTO THE AIR
AT 140 MILES AN HOUR.
THIS SUGGESTS THAT THE ICE
COULD HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED IN
THE AIR BY POWERFUL UPDRAFTS,
BUT BELL SPOTS A PROBLEM.
THOSE ARE THE TYPES OF
WINDS THAT WE WOULD ONLY FIND
IN SOME OF THE STRONGEST
HURRICANES ON THE PLANET.
AND IT'S JUST NOT THE TYPE OF CONDITIONS
WE WOULD HAVE SEEN
OVER LONDON AT THAT TIME.
THE ORIGIN OF THE ICE
BOMB REMAINS A MYSTERY.
IT'S ABSOLUTELY WORRYING. IF
THESE CHUNKS OF ICE THAT BIG
CAN FALL FROM THE SKY WITHOUT WARNING,
THEN ANY ONE OF US
COULD BE HIT AT ANY TIME.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
Narrator: IN A WAR-TORN CITY UNDER SIEGE,
A CEASEFIRE'S NERVOUS CALM IS SHATTERED
BY AN INCOMING FIERY ORB.
PEOPLE MUST HAVE LOOKED UP AND THOUGHT,
"THIS IS THE END OF THE WORLD."
Narrator: IS IT AN ATTACK
BY THE ENEMY AT THE GATE,
OR IS IT SOMETHING EVEN MORE TERRIFYING...
A VISITOR FROM ANOTHER WORLD?
DON'T KNOW WHERE IT CAME FROM,
DON'T KNOW WHAT ITS IMPACT COULD BE,
BUT IT'S BAD AND IT'S
COMING IN YOUR DIRECTION.
♪♪
[ BEEPING ]
Narrator: CITY OF DONETSK, UKRAINE,
FEBRUARY 24, 2015.
[ MISSILES LAUNCHING ]
FOR OVER A YEAR, THE COUNTRY
HAS BEEN TEARING ITSELF APART.
[ GUNFIRE ]
ITS CITIZENS ARE USED TO COWERING IN FEAR
AS THE GLOW OF MISSILES FILL THE NIGHT SKY.
BUT THEN COMES A CEASEFIRE
AND AN EERIE QUIET DESCENDS ON THE CITY.
♪♪
LINDSEY MORAN, A FORMER
CLANDESTINE OFFICER FOR THE CIA,
IS AN EXPERT ON MODERN WAR ZONES.
Moran: THIS CEASEFIRE
WAS VERY TENUOUS, AT BEST.
AND NOBODY KNEW IF IT
WAS REALLY GOING TO HOLD.
BUT IT WAS A DANGEROUS,
DANGEROUS TIME IN THE UKRAINE.
Narrator: DAY SIX OF THE CEASEFIRE,
10:50 P.M...
A SURVEILLANCE CAMERA SPYING ON THE CITY
CAPTURES A FIERY OBJECT NONE
OF THE WAR-WEARY INHABITANTS
HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE.
Wallace: SO YOU HAVE THIS
BALL OF LIGHT UP ABOVE THE CITY.
IS IT A FRIEND OR IS IT A FOE?
SEEING SOMETHING LIKE THIS,
THE IMMEDIATE THOUGHT MIGHT BE,
"THAT'S A U.F.O."
♪♪
Narrator: THIS ISN'T THE FIRST
U.F.O. TO SPOOK THE UKRAINE.
IN 1982, REPORTS OF A
LARGE, MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
HOVERING ABOVE A NUCLEAR
BASE NEARLY STARTS WORLD WAR III.
SENIOR BASE OFFICIALS CLAIM THAT THE U.F.O.
TAKES CONTROL OF THE MISSILE
LAUNCH CODES FOR 15 SECONDS,
PLUNGING THE MILITARY INTO RED ALERT.
NO EXPLANATION HAS EVER BEEN
FOUND FOR THE INCREDIBLE EVENT.
Moran: THE PEOPLE OF
DONETSK, THEY MUST HAVE
LOOKED UP AND THOUGHT,
"THIS IS THE END OF THE WORLD."
Narrator: COMING UP... RESIDENTS OF DONETSK
FEAR A WEAPON OF MASS DESTRUCTION
IS HEADING THEIR WAY.
IT'S LIKE NO WEAPON I'VE EVER SEEN BEFORE.
Narrator: AND THE TREE THAT GUSHES BLOOD.
IT'S LIKE A HORROR MOVIE, IT REALLY IS.
TREES DON'T BLEED.
[ SAW BUZZES ]
[ BEEPING ]
♪♪
Narrator: A DAZZLING,
UNIDENTIFIED ORB OF LIGHT
IN THE SKY IS APPROACHING
THE WAR-TORN UKRAINIAN
CITY OF DONETSK.
♪♪
MILITARY ANALYST CARLO MUÑOZ
FEARS THE FRAGILE CEASEFIRE
IS ABOUT TO BE SHATTERED.
Muñoz: IF YOU'RE A SOLDIER IN DONETSK
AND YOU SEE THIS LIGHT ORB KIND OF
MOVING TOWARDS YOUR POSITION,
YOUR AUTOMATIC ASSUMPTION
IS THAT IT'S A WEAPON.
IT'S A WEAPON BEING USED
AGAINST YOU BY YOUR ENEMIES
TO KILL YOU.
Narrator: PACO CHIERICI, A
FORMER U.S. NAVY FIGHTER PILOT,
INSPECTS THE FOOTAGE.
HE BELIEVES THE OBJECT IS
ACTUALLY MOVING TOO SLOWLY
TO BE ANY KIND OF INCOMING MISSILE.
Chierici: WHAT SEEMS TO BE A TIME LAPSE,
THERE'S NO TIME STAMP ON THE VIDEO ITSELF,
SO IT'S HARD TO KNOW EXACTLY
HOW LONG IT TAKES PLACE,
BUT IT SEEMS TO BE A
MATTER OF MANY MINUTES,
JUST BY LOOKING AT THE CARS, YOU KNOW,
THE RATE OF THE CAR LIGHTS THAT GO BY.
♪♪
Narrator: WHEN SLOWED
DOWN, THE FOOTAGE SHOWS
THAT THE OBJECT TRAVERSES THE SKYLINE
IN APPROXIMATELY EIGHT MINUTES.
Moran: IF IT'S A WEAPON,
IT'S LIKE NO WEAPON I'VE EVER SEEN BEFORE,
BECAUSE IT'S REALLY GOING THROUGH THE SKY
AT A SNAIL'S PACE.
[ GUNFIRE ]
Narrator: INSTEAD, MORAN
BELIEVES THE FOOTAGE
COULD SHOW A WEAPON
DESIGNED TO WRECK THE MORALE
OF THE BESIEGED CITY'S JITTERY INHABITANTS.
PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE HAS
BEEN USED THROUGHOUT HISTORY.
SO, PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE
INCLUDES DOING THINGS
TO INTIMIDATE OR UNSETTLE A POPULATION.
[ GUNFIRE ] [ HEAVY METAL PLAYS ]
[ SOLDIER SHOUTS ]
Narrator: IN PRESENT-DAY AFGHANISTAN,
THE U.S. ARMY BLASTS OUT
METALLICA TO STRIKE FEAR
IN THE TALIBAN.
NEW LASER TECHNOLOGIES ALLOW MOVING IMAGES
TO BE PROJECTED ONTO CLOUDS FROM AIRCRAFT.
IN ONE PARTICULARLY
OUTLANDISH PLAN BY THE U.S.,
THEY WERE GOING TO PROJECT A
GOD ABOVE AN ENEMY STRONGHOLD
TO SCARE THEM INTO GIVING UP.
Muñoz: SEEING SOMETHING COMPLETELY ALIEN
TO WHAT YOU'VE BEEN SURROUNDED BY,
IT RAISES THE FEAR LEVEL BY A FACTOR OF 10.
Narrator: MILITARY ANALYST CARLO MUÑOZ
HAS SEEN THE USE OF INTENSE LIGHT TO CREATE
PANIC IN WAR ZONES.
Muñoz: THE U.S. MILITARY HAS EXPERIMENTED
WITH TECHNOLOGIES TO BLIND OR CONFUSE.
THEY WERE CALLED DAZZLERS.
ANY WEAPON DESIGNED TO
BLIND A CITY THE SIZE OF DONETSK
WOULD LIKELY HAVE TAKEN OUT
THE CAMERA THAT TOOK THIS VIDEO.
SO, I HAVE TO ASSUME
THAT SOMETHING LIKE THIS IS
NOT WHAT WE'RE SEEING RIGHT NOW.
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
♪♪
Narrator: EXPERTS STRUGGLE
TO EXPLAIN THE COMPOSITION
OF THE MYSTERIOUS ORB.
IT'S BURNING SO BRIGHTLY
AND IT'S MOVING SO SLOWLY,
IT'S ALMOST LIKE A MINI MOON
LIGHTING UP THE NIGHT SKY.
Narrator: CHEMIST ANDREA
SELLA BELIEVES THERE IS ONE
OBVIOUS CANDIDATE FOR THE CHEMICAL COMPOUND
THAT CAN CREATE SUCH BRIGHT LIGHT.
Sella: COULD IT BE THAT WHITE
PHOSPHORUS IS BEING USED HERE?
IT'S WELL KNOWN FOR
THE FACT THAT IT IGNITES
SPONTANEOUSLY IN AIR.
[ GUNFIRE ]
Narrator: WHITE PHOSPHORUS HAS
BEEN USED AS A TERRIFYING WEAPON.
IT BURNS CONTINUOUSLY AT 1,500 DEGREES.
IF IT STRIKES A VICTIM,
IT CAN MELT SKIN FROM BONE LIKE BUTTER.
PHOSPHORUS HAS BEEN BANNED
UNDER THE GENEVA CONVENTION
AND BASICALLY DEEMED A CHEMICAL WEAPON.
Narrator: BUT MORAN REVEALS
THAT WHILE PHOSPHORUS
CANNOT BE USED IN WEAPONS,
IT IS STILL USED IN WARFARE.
IT DOES HAVE A MILITARY PURPOSE.
IT CAN BE USED TO
ILLUMINATE A BATTLE SPACE.
[ GUNFIRE ]
IT DOES SHOW SOME MORE CHARACTERISTICS
OF AN ILLUMINATION FLARE.
THIS IS IN COMMON USE BY MILITARIES
IN THE UNITED STATES, IN
RUSSIA, OTHER WORLD POWERS.
Narrator: IF THE RUSSIANS USE PHOSPHORUS
TO LIGHT UP DONETSK IN
ADVANCE OF A NIGHT ATTACK,
THEN THE CEASEFIRE WILL BE OVER.
FOR SOMETHING WEIRD,
GLOWING, AND UNEXPLAINABLE
TO BE MENACINGLY
TRAVERSING OVER THEIR CITY SKY,
IT MUST HAVE BEEN REALLY SCARY.
♪♪
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
[ CHAINSAW BUZZING ]
Narrator: NOW, A CHAINSAW CUTS INTO A TREE
AND IT SPURTS CRIMSON BLOOD.
IT'S BIZARRE, IT'S UNNATURAL,
AND IT'S BLEEDING ALL OVER THE PLACE.
TREES DON'T BLEED.
Narrator: IF IT'S NOT THE
TRUNK ITSELF THAT'S BLEEDING,
IS IT SOMETHING IT ATE FOR BREAKFAST?
[ SCREAMING ]
A MAN-EATING TREE USES ITS TENDRILS
TO ENSNARE PREY, INCLUDING
LARGE PREY LIKE PEOPLE,
AND IT CAN DRAIN THEIR BLOOD.
Woman: THIS LOOKS LIKE ABSOLUTE CARNAGE,
LIKE A CHAINSAW MASSACRE.
Narrator: CHINA, FUJIAN
PROVINCE, SEPTEMBER 2015...
A LUMBERJACK SAWING A TREE
TRUNK TRIGGERS A BLOODBATH.
IT'S ALMOST LIKE HE HIT AN ARTERY OR A VEIN
INSIDE THE TREE, BUT
TREES DON'T HAVE ARTERIES,
SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON.
I HAVE NEVER MET A TREE THAT EVEN BLED ONCE
A LITTLE BIT, LET ALONE
SPEWED LIKE BLEH, BLEH...
SPEWING BLOOD AND GUTS.
IT'S LIKE A HORROR MOVIE.
WE KNOW WHAT TREE SAP LOOKS LIKE.
THIS DOESN'T LOOK LIKE TREE SAP.
SAP COMES OUT LIKE DRIP, DRIP, DRIP.
THIS IS LIKE... [ EXPLODING NOISE ]
THE BLOOD JUST COMES GUSHING OUT.
♪♪
Narrator: INCREDIBLY,
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGIST
DEBORAH HYDE DISCOVERS
THIS IS NOT THE FIRST REPORT
OF A TREE WITH A BLOODY HISTORY.
19th CENTURY EXPLORERS MAPPING
THE JUNGLES OF MADAGASCAR
RETURNED WITH TERRIFYING
STORIES OF A MAN-EATING TREE.
Hyde: IT ALLEGEDLY WAS SACRIFICED TO.
THERE WAS A WOMAN THAT
WAS TAKEN UP, AND ITS TENDRILS
GATHERED HER AND IT ATE HER.
Narrator: MORE RECENT
REPORTS DESCRIBE A CREEPER
IN CENTRAL AMERICA WITH
A THIRST FOR HUMAN FLESH.
♪♪
IT'S THE TALE OF THE SO-CALLED
VAMPIRE VINE OF NICARAGUA,
WHICH USES ITS TENDRILS TO ENSNARE PREY,
INCLUDING LARGE PREY LIKE PEOPLE,
AND IT CAN DRAIN THEIR BLOOD.
Narrator: NO SPECIMENS OF THE VAMPIRE VINE
HAVE EVER BEEN FOUND.
BUT HAVE LUMBERJACKS IN CHINA STUMBLED UPON
A TREE WITH A TASTE FOR BLOOD?
[ WHIRRING ]
♪♪
COMING UP... BLOODY BOTANY
GIVES EXPERTS THE SHIVERS.
NATURE IS WEIRD AND SOMETIMES DISGUSTING.
[ BEEPING ]
[ SAW BUZZING ]
Narrator: A CHAINSAW
CUTTING A TREE IN CHINA
TRIGGERS A FOUNTAIN OF RED.
IT'S NOT JUST OOZING A
BIT, IT'S ACTUALLY GUSHING.
♪♪
Narrator: THE FOOTAGE
COMES TO THE ATTENTION
OF BIOLOGIST JEFFREY DEAN.
DEAN CONFIRMS THAT FLESH-EATING PLANTS
AREN'T JUST A CREEPY PLOT
DEVICE IN HORROR MOVIES.
THERE ARE A FEW HUNDRED
SPECIES OF CARNIVOROUS PLANTS.
Narrator: THE MOST RAVENOUS
THRIVES IN THE WETLANDS
OF NORTH AND SOUTH CAROLINA
AND TRAPS LIVING CREATURES
WITH BOOBY TRAP HAIRS ON ITS LEAVES.
WHEN AN INVADING INSECT
OR BEETLE TOUCHES A HAIR,
IT TRIGGERS THE LEAVES TO SLAM SHUT
LIKE A SPRING-COIL TRAP.
IT THEN BREAKS DOWN ITS
PRISONER FOR CONSUMPTION
BY RELEASING DIGESTIVE ENZYMES.
IT'S CALLED THE VENUS FLY TRAP.
ONCE THE INSECT'S
TRAPPED, IT'S GOING TO DIE
AND IT'S GOING TO DEGRADE.
AND AS IT COMES APART, IT RELEASES NITROGEN
THAT THE PLANT IS ABLE
TO ABSORB AND FEED ON.
Narrator: THE FOUR-FOOT HIGH PITCHER PLANT,
DISCOVERED IN THE
JUNGLES OF SOUTHEAST ASIA,
HAS AN EVEN MORE VORACIOUS APPETITE.
THE SKELETAL REMAINS OF
MICE AND LIZARDS AND SNAKES
HAVE BEEN FOUND IN THE BOTTOMS OF THESE
LARGER PITCHER PLANTS.
♪♪
Narrator: FOR DEAN, A
CARNIVOROUS PLANT'S ABILITY
TO EAT A CREATURE RAISES
A TANTALIZING POSSIBILITY,
THAT A PLANT COULD DEVELOP
THE ABILITY TO CONSUME A HUMAN.
IF THERE WERE SUCH A
THING AS A VENUS FLY TRAP
WITH A TRAP BIG ENOUGH THAT
A HUMAN COULD WALK INTO IT,
THERE'S NOTHING THAT WOULD
PREVENT THAT LEAF FROM
EVENTUALLY ABSORBING
YOU WHEN YOU PASSED AWAY.
THAT'S JUST THE NATURE OF HOW IT OPERATES.
Narrator: THE AVERAGE HUMAN BODY CONTAINS
FOUR POUNDS OF NITROGEN, MORE THAN ENOUGH
TO KEEP A TREE HEALTHY.
BUT DEAN DOUBTS THAT THERE
ARE MAN-MUNCHING TREES.
THERE'S NEVER BEEN ANY EVIDENCE AT ALL
OF A PLANT THAT WOULD BE
LARGE ENOUGH TO TRAP AND DEVOUR
A CREATURE THE SIZE OF A HUMAN BEING.
[ WAILING ]
[ BEEPING, CAMERA WHIRS ]
♪♪
Narrator: ZOOLOGIST TARA PIRIE
ANALYZES THE HUGE QUANTITY OF BLOOD
AND CONSIDERS IF THE LOGGER
MAY HAVE SLICED THROUGH
AN ANIMAL INSIDE THE TREE.
Pirie: USUALLY SNAKES ARE VERY
SENSITIVE TO THEIR SURROUNDINGS.
HOWEVER, WHEN IT IS IN HIBERNATION,
OBVIOUSLY, IT IS VERY
LETHARGIC, VERY SLOW MOVING.
AND THERE HAS BEEN
OCCASIONS WHERE PEOPLE HAVE
CHOPPED DOWN TREES AND CUT SNAKES IN HALF.
Man: OH, MY GOD!
Narrator: BUT ZOOLOGIST
ROLAND KAYS' ANALYSIS
OF THE AMOUNT OF RED
LIQUID COMING OUT OF THE TREE
CASTS DOUBT ON THE SNAKE THEORY.
WHEN YOU SEE ALL THIS GOOP
COMING OUT OF THIS TREE,
YOU HAVE TO ASK, WHAT
SIZE ANIMAL WOULD IT TAKE
TO MAKE THAT MUCH BLOOD?
SO IT WOULD'VE HAD TO
BEEN TOO GIANT OF AN ANIMAL
TO MAKE THIS MUCH BLOOD,
AND IT JUST COULDN'T HAVE FIT IN THAT TREE.
Narrator: JEFFREY DEAN
STEPS THROUGH THE FOOTAGE
FRAME BY FRAME.
HE IDENTIFIES THE TREE AS A EUCALYPTUS.
A FULLY GROWN EUCALYPTUS TREE CAN CONTAIN
OVER FIVE GALLONS OF SAP,
AND ITS MOST ACTIVE INGREDIENT
IS A GUM CALLED KINO,
WHOSE COLOR IS BLOOD RED.
THIS RED SAP, OR KINO MATERIAL,
IS USED IN A WIDE VARIETY
OF TRADITIONAL MEDICINES.
Narrator: THE SAP IN THE FOOTAGE
IS EASILY MISTAKEN FOR BLOOD,
DUE TO A UNIQUE QUALITY BOTH FLUIDS SHARE.
SAP AND BLOOD BOTH HAVE
CLOTTING COMPOUNDS TO PREVENT
THE LIQUID FROM JUST FLOWING
OUT OF THE TREE OR THE BODY.
SO THAT COULD BE WHY THE
SAP LOOKS LIKE THE CONSISTENCY
OF CLOTTED BLOOD.
IT'S LIKE WHEN YOU BITE
INTO THAT JELLY DONUT
AND YOU HIT THE POCKET WITH THE JELLY IN IT
AND IT COMES SQUIRTING OUT
AND GETS ALL OVER YOUR SLACKS.
♪♪
NATURE IS WEIRD AND SOMETIMES DISGUSTING.
Narrator: WORLDWIDE, SIX BILLION
CAMERAS ARE WATCHING US...
ON OUR STREETS, AT WORK, AND IN OUR HOMES.
THEY CAPTURE THINGS THAT SEEM IMPOSSIBLE.
IT DEFIES THE LAWS OF PHYSICS.
Man: AH, THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE, MAN.
Narrator: EXPERTS CARRY
OUT FORENSIC ANALYSIS
OF THESE UNUSUAL EVENTS.
THERE'S GOT TO BE SOME
EXPLANATION FOR WHAT'S GOING ON.
[ WOMEN SHOUTING ] [ CRASH, HORN HONKS ]
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
[ SCREAMING ] Narrator: COMING UP,
A CITY STREET IS SWALLOWED WHOLE.
IN THAT INSTANT, IT WAS GONE.
YOU KNOW, IN ONE SECOND.
[ LOUD CRASH, SCREAMING ]
IT'S DISTURBING TO WATCH.
Narrator: AN EIGHT-LEGGED INVASION.
400 FOOT LONG WALL OF WEB.
YOU CAN'T ESCAPE.
Narrator: IS MAN ON THE MENU?
I JUST THOUGHT THAT THEY WILL EAT ME ALIVE.
I KNOW THEY WILL.
AND AN UNWELCOME VISITOR FROM ABOVE.
ALL OF A SUDDEN, BOOM!
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
JUST ANOTHER COUPLE OF FEET,
AND THESE TWO WOULD'VE BEEN ON ICE.
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ] [ BURSTING ]
Narrator: BIZARRE PHENOMENA...
MYSTERIES CAUGHT ON CAMERA.
WHAT IS THE TRUTH BEHIND
THIS "STRANGE EVIDENCE"?
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
A TEXAS PARK IS ENGULFED IN A MEGA-WEB.
400 FOOT LONG WALL OF WEB.
YOU CAN'T ESCAPE. HOW TERRIFYING?
♪♪
Kays: WHAT KIND OF PREY
ARE THEY TRYING TO CATCH?
COULD A DEER GET STUCK
IN THAT? COULD A PERSON?
Narrator: LOCALS FEAR
AN EIGHT-LEGGED INVADER
HAS DEVELOPED A TASTE FOR HUMAN FLESH.
MY BIGGEST FEAR WAS BEING
EATEN ALIVE BY A SPIDER.
♪♪
[ STATIC BLIPS ]
♪♪
LAKE TAWAKONI STATE PARK, TEXAS...
A QUIET, RURAL RETREAT
JUST 50 MILES WEST OF DALLAS.
[ VARIOUS ANIMAL CALLS ]
AUGUST 6, 2007.
PARK RANGER FREDDIE
GOWIN IS CHECKING A TRAIL
WHEN HE STUMBLES ON A
VISION FROM A NIGHTMARE.
I CAME AROUND THIS ONE CORNER,
I SAW THE STRANGEST THING
I'VE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE.
Narrator: A GIGANTIC SPIDERWEB
SPREAD RIGHT ACROSS THE TRAIL.
I THOUGHT I GOT CAUGHT UP
IN A SCI-FI MOVIE OR SOMETHING.
Narrator: THE SINISTER WEB
TOWERS OVER 40 FEET HIGH
AND SPREADS STICKY THREADS
HUNDREDS OF FEET ACROSS.
♪♪
Woman: IT WAS TERRIFYING.
IT WOULD SCARE YOU TO DEATH.
♪♪
Gowin: WHAT SCARED ME
WAS IT COULD TAKE OVER
AND TOTALLY DESTROY THE PARK.
♪♪
Kays: THE FIRST THING I WONDERED
WHEN I SAW ALL THIS SPIDERWEB WAS,
IS IT FROM ONE GIANT SPIDER?
♪♪
[ WHIRRING ]
Narrator: ZOOLOGIST ROLAND KAYS
FEARS THE WORLD'S BIGGEST SPIDER
HAS MADE ITSELF AT HOME IN TEXAS.
THE LARGEST SPIDER IN THE WORLD
IS CALLED THE GIANT HUNTSMAN,
AND IT'S SO BIG THAT IF
YOU STRETCH ITS LEGS OUT,
IT CAN BE UP TO A FOOT LONG.
Narrator: THE GIANT HUNTSMAN IS JUST ONE
OF A LARGE GROUP OF
CARNIVOROUS HUNTSMAN SPIDERS.
THEY USE THEIR VENOM
TO FEED ON COCKROACHES,
AND IN THIS FOOTAGE, A MOUSE.
[ SIREN WAILING ]
BUT SOME SPIDERS ALSO ATTACK HUMANS,
THEIR BITE CAUSING NECROSIS,
DEATH OF HUMAN CELLS.
Woman: OH, HA HA HA. SEND HELP.
Narrator: ONE AGGRESSIVE HUNTSMAN SPIDER
EVEN TRAPS THIS AUSTRALIAN
WOMAN IN HER HOME.
THOSE ARE VERY, VERY DANGEROUS SPIDERS.
YOU DON'T WISH TO HAVE ONE OF THOSE
END UP IN YOUR SLEEPING BAG.
[ SPIDER SCREECHING ]
♪♪
Narrator: BUT SPIDER EXPERT KEVIN KASKY
FINDS A FLAW IN KAYS' HUNTSMAN HUNCH.
THE HUNTSMAN ISN'T A WEB SLINGER.
THEY DON'T CREATE A WEB
BECAUSE THEY ARE WHAT
WE CALL ACTIVE HUNTERS.
THEY RUN AFTER THEIR PREY.
Narrator: KASKY SUSPECTS THAT THE CULPRIT
MIGHT BE A SPIDER THAT
KILLS NOT WITH VENOM,
BUT WITH THE STUNNING
STRANGULATING STRENGTH
OF ITS WEB.
♪♪
DARWIN'S BARK SPIDER MAKES THE BIGGEST WEB,
MEASURED AT 25 METERS OR ABOUT 82 FEET.
Narrator: DARWIN'S BARK SPIDERWEB
IS THE STRONGEST BIOLOGICAL
MATERIAL EVER STUDIED.
[ GUNSHOT ]
TEN TIMES TOUGHER THAN KEVLAR,
ONE OF ITS 30-SQUARE-FOOT WEBS
COULD SUPPORT A TWO-TON FAMILY CAR
OR EASILY TRAP A HUMAN VICTIM.
I DON'T THINK I'D WANT TO
COME ACROSS ONE OF THOSE
IN A DARK PASSAGE
'CAUSE I DON'T THINK I'D
GET OUT OF THEIR WEB.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT BIOLOGIST KELLY PRICE
SPOTS A CLUE IN THE FOOTAGE
THAT SUGGESTS THE WEB CAN'T BE THE WORK
OF THE DARWIN BARK SPIDER.
WEBS ARE USUALLY BUILT SOLITARILY
AND TO A VERY ORGANIZED PATTERN,
BUT HERE WE SEE A MISHMASH
OF A WHOLE BUNCH OF DIFFERENT WEBS
IN NO ORGANIZED PATTERN WHATSOEVER.
Narrator: THIS LEADS EXPERTS
TO AN ALARMING DISCOVERY.
THE MONSTROUS TANGLE OF SPIDER SILK
HASN'T BEEN SPUN BY A
SINGLE GIANT SPECIMEN.
THIS PARK HAS BECOME THE DOMAIN OF AN ARMY
OF THOUSANDS OF WEB-SPINNING ARACHNIDS.
WE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT KIND OF SPIDER IT WAS.
THAT'S THE SCARIEST PART.
♪♪
Narrator: WHAT THEY FEAR MOST IS A PACK
OF THE LONE STAR STATE'S
DEADLIEST NATIVE SPIDER...
THE BLACK WIDOW.
ONE BITE CAN KILL A HUMAN.
♪♪
BLACK WIDOW SPIDERS
KILL SEVEN PEOPLE IN THE U.S. EACH YEAR.
SO TO SEE THIS MANY SPIDERS
ALL WORKING TOGETHER
IS KIND OF TERRIFYING.
♪♪
Narrator: BLACK WIDOW
VENOM IS 15 TIMES STRONGER
THAN A RATTLESNAKE.
ALTHOUGH SOLITARY, THEY
DO SOCIALIZE IN MATING SEASON,
AND THIS IS BLACK WIDOW MATING SEASON.
♪♪
FEMALE BLACK WIDOWS
KILL MALES AFTER MATING.
COULD THESE HOMICIDAL FEMALES
BE TURNING THEIR VIOLENT DATING
METHODS TOWARDS BIGGER PREY?
♪♪
WHEN YOU SEE A SPIDERWEB THIS BIG,
YOU WONDER, WHAT KIND OF
PREY ARE THEY TRYING TO CATCH?
HOW BIG OF A PREY? COULD
A DEER GET STUCK IN THAT?
COULD A PERSON?
♪♪
[ BIRDS CHIRPING ]
Narrator: SPIDER EXPERT MIKE QUINN
STEPS UP TO THE CHALLENGE.
BUT WHEN HE EXAMINES THE MASSIVE WEB,
HE SPOTS SOMETHING INCREDIBLE.
Quinn: THERE ARE AT LEAST
16 SPECIES OF SPIDERS
LIVING IN THE WEB.
Narrator: SPECIES OF SPIDER
THAT WOULD NORMALLY FIGHT TO THE DEATH
ARE WORKING TOGETHER.
♪♪
Quinn: MOST SPIDERS ARE TERRITORIAL,
SO HAVING ALL THESE
DIFFERENT SPIDERS ALL TOGETHER
WAS REALLY UNUSUAL.
Kasky: SPIDERS ARE NOT
NORMALLY SOCIAL INSECTS.
THE ONLY TIME THAT THEY
ENJOY OTHER SPIDERS' COMPANY
IS WHEN IT'S TIME FOR DINNER,
AND USUALLY MEANING THAT
THEY'VE INVITED THEM OVER
TO BE THE DINNER.
♪♪
Narrator: ARACHNIDS HAVE
A FEROCIOUS APPETITE.
[ SQUIRMING ] SCIENTISTS ESTIMATE
THE GLOBAL SPIDER POPULATION
EATS UP TO 800 MILLION
TONS OF PREY EACH YEAR.
THESE EIGHT-LEGGED PREDATORS
COULD EAT EVERY HUMAN ON EARTH
AND STILL HAVE ROOM FOR DESSERT.
I JUST THOUGHT THEY'RE
GONNA ATTACK ALL AT ONE TIME.
THEY WILL EAT ME ALIVE, I KNOW THEY WILL.
♪♪
[ TRILLING, CAMERA WHIRS ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
EXPERTS RACE TO DISCOVER
WHAT THESE FLESH-EATING
SPIDERS ARE FEEDING ON.
IT RAISES THE QUESTION, WHY
DID THEY BUILD ONE MASSIVE WEB?
Narrator: AND A CITY STREET SWALLOWS CARS.
[ SCREAMING ]
Proctor: THE CARS MOVE AND THEY DISAPPEAR,
AND THE PEOPLE, THEY'RE IN SHOCK.
[ STATIC BLIPS ]
Narrator: A MONSTER WEB IN A TEXAS PARK
IS PACKED WITH A SKIN-CRAWLING
ASSORTMENT OF SPIDERS.
IT'S NOT NORMAL BEHAVIOR
TO HAVE SPIDERS ON TOP OF SPIDERS.
♪♪
Narrator: WITH AN ARMORED EXOSKELETON,
TOXIC VENOM, AND EIGHT-EYED SPIDEY SENSES,
THE ONLY THING STOPPING
SPIDERS FROM WORLD DOMINATION
IS THAT MOST OF THEM
OPERATE AS LONE WOLVES,
UNTIL NOW.
[ EERIE MUSIC ]
IT RAISES THE QUESTION,
WHY ARE THESE SPIDERS
CONGREGATING ALL TOGETHER,
AND WHY DID THEY BUILD ONE MASSIVE WEB?
[ BEEPING ]
♪♪
Narrator: ZOOLOGIST ROLAND
KAYS REEXAMINES THE FOOTAGE
AND DISCOVERS A CLUE
TO THE SPIDER BEHAVIOR.
VAST NUMBERS OF SMALL FLIES CALLED MIDGES
HAVE BEEN CAUGHT IN THE WEB.
IF THERE'S LOTS TO EAT,
THEIR POPULATIONS CAN GROW REALLY QUICKLY
AND THAT SEEMS TO BE
WHAT HAPPENED IN THIS CASE.
Lovell: IT'S KIND OF A
SPIDER FEEDING FRENZY.
WITH ALL THESE MIDGES IN THE AIR,
ALL THE SPIDERS HAVE
COME INTO THIS ONE AREA
TO CATCH THEM ALL WHILE THEY CAN.
Narrator: THE WORRY FOR LOCAL TEXANS IS,
WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN THE
SPIDERS RUN OUT OF MIDGES?
[ SQUISHING ]
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
IN THE HOMETOWN OF HORROR
WRITER EDGAR ALLAN POE,
THE EARTH OPENS UP AND
SWALLOWS A U.S. CITY STREET.
[ SCREAMING ]
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
IT BRINGS DOWN ALL THE CARS,
MUCH OF THE PAVEMENT,
THE LIGHT POSTS, THE FENCE.
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
BAM! THE CARS MOVE AND THEY DISAPPEAR,
AND THE PEOPLE, THEY'RE IN SHOCK.
Narrator: ARE SECRET TUNNELS
COLLAPSING BENEATH BALTIMORE
THREATENING THE ENTIRE CITY?
THIS IS KIND OF LIKE WATCHING A DISASTER
HAPPENING IN SLOW MOTION.
[ SCREAMING ]
[ LOUD CRASH ]
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
♪♪
Narrator: BALTIMORE, MARYLAND...
HOME TO OVER 600,000 PEOPLE.
AT THE HEART OF THE
300-YEAR-OLD HISTORIC CITY
IS CHARLES VILLAGE.
APRIL 30, 2014, EAST 26th STREET.
BENEATH THE PRETTY NEIGHBORHOOD,
AN ANCIENT GODZILLA-LIKE
MONSTER APPEARS TO BE AWAKENING.
[ LOW GROWL ]
Reyes: THERE WAS A LOT OF PEOPLE OUTSIDE.
I CAME OUT AND NOTICED ACROSS THE STREET
WAS SINKING IN FARTHER AND FARTHER.
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
Narrator: THE TERRIFYING
FOOTAGE STUNS INVESTIGATORS.
Proctor: WHAT IS GOING ON?
BECAUSE YOU DON'T NORMALLY
SEE THE EARTH SWALLOWING UP CARS.
THE WHOLE STREET STARTED TO
CAVE IN AND SINK DOWN SLOWLY.
♪♪
[ SCREAMING ] Woman: OH, MY GOD.
[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]
[ LOUD CRASH ]
Narrator: EAST 26th STREET
COLLAPSES INTO THE GULLY BELOW.
THAT INSTANT, IT WAS GONE.
[ SCREAMING ]
I LOST MY CAR
AND THEN I JUST HAD TO
STAND THERE AND WATCH IT FALL.
[ LOUD CRASH ]
[ PANICKED CHATTERING ]
Narrator: RESIDENTS FEAR THE WORST.
Reyes: WE DIDN'T KNOW IF THE
ENTIRE STREET WAS GONNA FALL.
WE DIDN'T KNOW IF OUR
HOUSES WERE GONNA FALL IN.
WE REALLY DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WAS GOING ON.
Di Bartolo: HOW CAN
SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAPPEN?
IT'S DISTURBING TO WATCH.
[ SCREAMING ]
[ LOUD CRASH ]
[ CAMERA WHIRRING ]
♪♪
Narrator: ONE LOCAL BELIEVES HE KNOWS
WHAT CAUSED THE COLLAPSE,
AND IT MAY PROVIDE HARD EVIDENCE
FOR A CHILLING LOCAL LEGEND
THAT A HAUNTED TUNNEL
SYSTEM LIES BENEATH BALTIMORE.
I'VE BEEN IN BALTIMORE MY WHOLE LIFE.
THERE'S ALL KINDS OF TUNNELS
THAT HAVE BEEN BUILT THROUGH THE YEARS,
GOING BACK TO THE CIVIL WAR.
Katsikides: GROWING UP IN BALTIMORE,
I HEARD LOTS OF FOLKLORE ABOUT THE TUNNELS
AND HOW THEY MIGHT
HAVE BEEN USED IN THE PAST.
Lovell: THE QUESTION IS,
WAS THIS CAR-EATING EVENT
ON 26th STREET CAUSED BY ONE OF
THESE SECRET TUNNELS COLLAPSING?
[ LOUD CRASH ] [ WOMAN SCREAMS ]
♪♪
Narrator: ALTHOUGH OLD TIMERS TELL TALES
OF BALTIMORE'S HONEYCOMB OF TUNNELS,
MOST RESIDENTS BELIEVE THEY
WERE NOTHING BUT FOLKLORE.
THAT WAS, UNTIL THE 1950s,
WHEN CONSTRUCTION WORKERS
REBUILDING LEXINGTON MARKET
DISCOVER A LONG-FORGOTTEN SECRET DOORWAY.
WE'RE IN THE SUN NOW.
♪♪
Narrator: GUIDE MARTHA WISE
HOLDS THE ONLY KEY TO THIS VAULT
AND KNOWS SUBTERRANEAN
BALTIMORE BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE.
Wise: AROUND 1951,
THEY DISCOVERED THE ENTRANCE
TO THE UNDERGROUND VAULTS
THAT HAD BEEN FORGOTTEN
FOR WHO KNOWS HOW LONG.
♪♪
Narrator: ACCORDING TO LEGEND,
THE SUBTERRANEAN NETWORK
RUNS FROM THE WASHINGTON
MONUMENT IN THE CITY CENTER
TO FORT McHENRY, TWO
MILES AWAY ON THE COAST.
[ CANNON FIRES ] IT IS
SAID AMERICAN SOLDIERS
IN THE BATTLE OF
BALTIMORE... [ HORSE WHINNIES ]
...USED THEM TO THWART
A BRITISH INVASION IN 1812,
A TRIUMPH THAT INSPIRED FRANCIS SCOTT KEY
TO WRITE "THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER."
♪♪
SOME BELIEVE THE GHOSTS
OF THE 19th CENTURY SOLDIERS
STILL STALK THESE TUNNELS.
THOUGH MANY DISMISS THE PASSAGEWAYS
AS FIGMENTS OF THE IMAGINATION,
WISE BEGS TO DIFFER.
Wise: THERE VERY EASILY COULD
BE MORE TUNNELS DOWN HERE.
OVER HERE IS SOMETHING VERY INTERESTING.
WE DO INDEED HAVE EVIDENCE OF A TUNNEL
BEHIND THIS WALL.
IT'S NOW CONCRETED OVER.
♪♪
Narrator: IF WISE IS RIGHT,
THE TUNNELS DUG OUT BY HAND
NOW SUPPORT AREAS OF A CITY
WITH MORE THAN 30 SKYSCRAPERS.
IF THEY'RE BEGINNING TO COLLAPSE,
THE WHOLE CITY IS IN DANGER.
Woman: OH, MY GOD! [ SCREAMING ]
THIS IS KIND OF LIKE WATCHING A DISASTER
HAPPENING IN SLOW MOTION.
[ SCREAMING ]
[ LOUD CRASH ]
[ TRILLING, CAMERA WHIRS ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
AN ENORMOUS BLOCK OF ICE
DROPS OUT OF A CLEAR LONDON SKY.
WHERE COULD THIS MASSIVE
CHUNK OF ICE OF COME FROM?
Narrator: AND INVESTIGATORS IN
THE BALTIMORE STREET COLLAPSE...
Woman: OH, MY GOD.
...GET THAT SINKING FEELING.
LANDSLIDES USUALLY DON'T JUST HAPPEN.
THEY NEED A TRIGGER.
[ STATIC BLIPS ]
[ SCREAMING ]
Narrator: COULD A NETWORK
OF CIVIL WAR PASSAGEWAYS
BE TO BLAME FOR THE
BALTIMORE STREET COLLAPSE?
♪♪
[ WHIRRING ]
♪♪
ACCORDING TO LOCAL LEGEND,
SECRET TUNNELS RUN FROM
THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT
IN THE CITY CENTER TO
FORT McHENRY ON THE COAST.
BUT IF THAT'S THE CASE,
THEY DON'T PASS BENEATH EAST 26th STREET.
THERE ARE NO MAJOR TUNNELS
IN THIS PARTICULAR AREA,
SO SOMETHING ELSE MUST
HAVE CAUSED THIS EVENT.
Narrator: PLANETARY SCIENTIST SIAN PROCTOR
STUDIES FOOTAGE OF THE COLLAPSE.
SHE SPOTS A DETAIL THAT
LEADS HER TO A FRESH THEORY
ABOUT WHAT CAUSED THE
RETAINING WALL TO FAIL.
Proctor: WHEN WE LOOK AT THE
METEOROLOGICAL RECORDS,
THE EAST COAST WAS JUST
GETTING HAMMERED BY RAIN.
Narrator: MOTHER NATURE DUMPED
NEARLY FOUR INCHES OF RAIN
IN AN HOUR.
THAT'S THE SECOND LARGEST
IN RECORDED HISTORY.
A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF RAIN.
Narrator: THE TORRENTIAL DOWNPOUR
OVERWHELMS THE CITY DRAINS
AND SATURATES THE GROUND.
IF YOU SUDDENLY COMBINE
WATER WITH DIRT, WHAT HAPPENS?
IT TURNS INTO MUD, IT
LIQUEFIES, AND THE MUD MOVES.
AND MUD MOVES DOWNHILL.
[ SCREAMING ]
Proctor: WHEN I LOOK AT THIS VIDEO,
I AM ABSOLUTELY SEEING A LANDSLIDE.
♪♪
Narrator: LANDSLIDES CAUSE
WIDESPREAD DESTRUCTION,
KILLING UP TO 50 PEOPLE
IN THE U.S. EACH YEAR
AND COSTING $3.5 BILLION.
THE LARGEST EVER RECORDED
STRUCK MOUNT ST. HELENS,
WASHINGTON STATE, IN MAY 1980,
SHIFTING ENOUGH DEBRIS TO
FILL 250 MILLION DUMP TRUCKS.
[ BEEPING ]
PROCTOR BELIEVES EAST
26th STREET'S CONSTRUCTION
ABOVE THE RAIL LINE SEALED ITS FATE.
WHEN THE GROUND BECOMES SUPER SATURATED,
THAT CAN TRIGGER A LANDSLIDE,
AND THIS IS WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE.
♪♪
Narrator: PROCTOR THINKS
THAT MUD HAD BEEN BUILDING UP
AGAINST THE RETAINING WALL.
THE RAINWATER TURNED
THE MUD TO HEAVIER LIQUID,
WHICH CAUSED THE WALL
TO BUCKLE, THEN COLLAPSE,
BRINGING DOWN THE STREET WITH IT.
THIS AMAZING AMOUNT OF
RAINFALL IS LITERALLY THE STRAW
THAT BROKE THE RETAINING WALL'S BACK.
Narrator: ONCE AGAIN,
NATURE OVERPOWERS A MANMADE STRUCTURE,
MIRACULOUSLY INJURING NO ONE.
[ LOUD CRASH ]
♪♪
ALTHOUGH THIS COLLAPSE
HASN'T UNCOVERED
BALTIMORE'S LEGENDARY TUNNELS,
LOCALS HAVEN'T GIVEN UP HOPE
THAT ONE DAY THEY WILL BE DISCOVERED.
BALTIMORE IS STILL HOLDING SOME SECRETS
VERY CLOSE TO ITS CHEST
AND IT WILL SHOW THEM
TO US WHEN IT'S READY.
♪♪
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
Narrator: NOW, A SLEEPY SUBURBAN STREET
RECEIVES AN UNWELCOME VISITOR FROM ABOVE.
ALL OF A SUDDEN, BAM!
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
SOMETHING FALLS FROM THE SKY.
Narrator: IT LEAVES
LOCALS FROZEN WITH FEAR.
JUST A FEW FEET FURTHER
OVER, I WOULD BE DEAD.
Narrator: AND A COLD CASE TO BE SOLVED.
Price: COULD THIS BE SOME TYPE
OF EXTREME WEATHER EVENT
WITH SUPER-SIZED HAILSTONES
SMASHING THE STREETS OF LONDON?
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
[ WHIRRING ]
[ ICE CRACKS ]
♪♪
Narrator: FEBRUARY 7,
2018, LONDON, ENGLAND...
THREE MILLION LONDONERS
START THE WORKING DAY.
AMONG THEM IS DENTIST HOWARD STEAN.
THERE WAS A WHISTLING
SOUND AS IF A BOMB WAS FALLING.
Narrator: A CAMERA
CAPTURES A SHOCKING EVENT.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
ALL OF A SUDDEN, BOOM, SOMETHING GIANT
COMES CRASHING DOWN ON 'EM.
Narrator: AN ENORMOUS BLOCK
OF ICE EXPLODES ON THE GROUND
JUST FEET FROM TWO UNSUSPECTING MEN.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
THAT GUY CAME SO CLOSE TO GETTING ICED.
[ TRILLING, CAMERA WHIRS ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
AN UNIDENTIFIED LIGHT
SPELLS DISASTER FOR A CITY.
THEY MUST HAVE LOOKED UP AND THOUGHT,
"THIS IS THE END OF THE WORLD."
Narrator: AND THE ICE BOMB
INVESTIGATION GETS A LIFT.
WE'RE AT 140 MILES AN
HOUR, AND THERE WE GO.
♪♪
[ BEEPING ]
Narrator: AN ICE BOMB
FALLS OUT OF A CLEAR-BLUE LONDON SKY.
IT IS A MIRACLE THAT NOBODY WAS HIT.
JUST A FEW FEET FURTHER
OVER, I WOULD BE DEAD.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
[ TRILLING ]
Narrator: THIS ISN'T THE FIRST CASE
OF UNEXPECTED THINGS FALLING FROM THE SKY.
IN 1954, A WOMAN IN ALABAMA
WAS STRUCK BY A GRAPEFRUIT-SIZE METEORITE
THAT CRASHED THROUGH HER ROOF.
SHE LIVED TO TELL THE TALE,
UNLIKE THE UNFORTUNATE BOY IN TURKEY
WHO WAS KILLED BY A GOAT
THAT FELL OFF A BUILDING.
EX-NYPD VIDEO ANALYST CONOR McCOURT
STUDIES THE SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE
TO WORK OUT THE SIZE OF THE
MYSTERIOUS FALLING ICE BLOCK.
WE HAVE THINGS THAT WE CAN COMPARE IT TO.
WE HAVE PEOPLE IN THE FOREGROUND HERE,
AND WE CAN USE THAT AS
A BASE. [ CAMERA WHIRS ]
IT'S ABOUT THE WIDTH OF A HUMAN BEING.
[ BEEP ]
Narrator: McCOURT CALCULATES
THAT AN ICE BLOCK THAT SIZE
WOULD WEIGH AROUND 45 POUNDS.
WOW, 45 POUNDS!
THAT'S LIKE A MICROWAVE
SMASHING ON TOP OF YOUR HEAD.
WHERE COULD THIS MASSIVE
CHUNK OF ICE HAVE COME FROM?
[ SHATTERING ] Narrator:
IN FREEZING CLIMATES,
FALLING ICE IS A KNOWN HAZARD.
IN THE UNITED STATES,
ABOUT 15 PEOPLE ARE KILLED
BY ICICLE-RELATED ACCIDENTS EACH YEAR.
BUT WITH NO ICE AND
SNOW IN LONDON THAT DAY,
EXPERTS RACE TO DISCOVER THE
SOURCE OF THIS LETHAL MISSILE
BEFORE SOMEONE ELSE IS HIT
BY AN ICE BOMB FROM THE SKY.
COULD THIS BE SOME TYPE
OF EXTREME WEATHER EVENT?
Narrator: AVIATION EXPERT JOE PAPPALARDO
STUDIES THE LOCATION
AND DISCOVERS THE NEAR-DEATH ICE EVENT
OCCURRED DIRECTLY UNDER
A FLIGHT PATH TO HEATHROW,
ONE OF THE WORLD'S BUSIEST AIRPORTS.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE FLIGHT RECORDS,
YOU SEE THAT THERE WAS AN
AIRPLANE THAT FLEW OVERHEAD
NOT SO LONG BEFORE THIS ICE BALL DROPPED.
[ AIRPLANE ENGINE ROARS ]
Narrator: 3,000 AIRCRAFT SWOOP
LOW OVER LONDON EVERY DAY,
AND THINGS DO OCCASIONALLY
FALL OUT OF INBOUND AIRCRAFT.
IN 2015, POLICE DISCOVERED
A BODY ON THE ROOF
OF A BUILDING TWO MILES FROM HERE.
HE'S IDENTIFIED AS A STOWAWAY
ON A FLIGHT FROM SOUTH AFRICA.
USUALLY, THESE STOWAWAYS
TRY TO STOW AWAY ON, SAY,
THE LANDING GEAR ON THE
OUTSIDE OF AN AIRPLANE CABIN.
USUALLY, THEY PASS OUT
BECAUSE UP ABOVE 25,000 FEET,
THE OXYGEN IS SO THIN THAT
YOU CAN'T STAY CONSCIOUS.
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS BELIEVE
THE MAN TRAGICALLY FELL FROM THE PLANE
WHEN THE LANDING GEAR LOWERED.
LOVELL BELIEVES THE CHUNK OF
ICE ALSO DROPPED FROM A PLANE.
Lovell: WHILE FROZEN HUMAN
BODIES FALLING FROM PLANES
IS QUITE RARE, THERE HAVE
BEEN A NUMBER OF CASES
OF BLUE ICE FALLING FROM PLANES.
BLUE ICE IS THE TERM THAT
PEOPLE USE FOR LATRINE WATER
THAT IS DROPPED FROM AN AIRPLANE.
Narrator: AIRPLANE TOILET
WATER IS BLUE IN COLOR.
IF IT LEAKS FROM THE AIRCRAFT,
IT FREEZES IN THE SUBZERO
TEMPERATURES AT HIGH ALTITUDE,
FORMING A SOLID BOMB THAT
PLUMMETS TO THE GROUND.
[ BOMBS WHISTLE, EXPLOSION ]
WHAT A WAY TO DIE,
BEING HIT BY A HUGE BALL
OF PLANE TOILET WASTE.
AIRPLANES AREN'T FLYING AROUND
OPENING UP THE LAVATORY DOORS
AND DROPPING HUMAN
WASTE ALL OVER THE PLACE.
THAT'S NOT HOW THAT WORKS AT ALL.
BLUE ICE OCCURS WHEN
THERE'S A LEAK IN THOSE SYSTEMS
AND IT'S A VERY RARE ACCIDENT.
Narrator: BUT IMAGE ANALYST McCOURT
NOTICES SOMETHING IN THE CLIP
THAT CHALLENGES THE BLUE ICE THEORY.
McCourt: LOOKING AT THE COLOR OF
THE OBJECT THAT HITS THE GROUND,
IT'S VERY WHITE.
WHEN THEY HAVE AIRLINE DISCHARGE,
IT'S USUALLY ACCOMPANIED
BY SOME BLUE CHEMICAL.
WE'RE NOT SEEING THAT HERE.
[ TRILLING, CAMERA WHIRRING ]
Narrator: PLANETARY SCIENTIST SIAN PROCTOR
BELIEVES A FREAK WEATHER
EVENT IS A POSSIBLE EXPLANATION.
THE FIRST THING THAT COMES TO MIND IS HAIL.
Narrator: MOST HAILSTONES ARE PEA-SIZED.
[ HAIL CRASHING DOWN ]
BUT SOMETIMES SUPER-SIZED
STONES PLUMMET TO THE EARTH.
THE LARGEST HAILSTONE EVER
RECORDED IN THE UNITED STATES
WAS IN SOUTH DAKOTA IN 2010.
IT WAS JUST UNDER TWO
POUNDS, EIGHT INCHES ACROSS.
IT WAS THE SIZE OF A GRAPEFRUIT.
[ SHATTERING ]
Narrator: METEOROLOGIST CHRIS BELL
HAS SEEN THE DEVASTATING
EFFECT OF GIANT HAILSTONES.
♪♪
THERE'S BEEN INSTANCES
IN AMERICA AND IN AFRICA
WHERE HERDS OF CATTLE HAVE BEEN WIPED OUT
BY A LARGE HAIL STORM,
SO THEY CAN POTENTIALLY BE DEADLY.
Narrator: BUT BELL FINDS A
HOLE IN THE HAIL THEORY.
Bell: WHEN YOU GET HAIL,
YOU'RE NOT JUST GONNA GET
ONE OR TWO HAILSTONES FALLING.
YOU'RE GONNA GET LOTS
OF HAILSTONES FALLING.
SO JUST SEEING ONE MASSIVE
CHUNK OF ICE HIT THE GROUND,
THAT ALMOST RULES OUT
THE POTENTIAL OF HAIL.
[ CAMERA WHIRS ]
Narrator: METEOROLOGIST CHRIS WALCEK
EXAMINES THE LATEST ACADEMIC RESEARCH
AND COMES ACROSS A FRIGHTENING POSSIBILITY.
THIS ICE BOMB HAS THE
HALLMARKS OF A MEGACRYOMETEOR.
A MEGACRYOMETEOR IS A
VERY LARGE PIECE OF ICE,
LARGER THAN ANY KNOWN HAILSTONE,
FALLING OUT OF THE SKY
UNDER CLEAR SKY CONDITIONS.
THE FORMATION MECHANISM
IS NOT TOO WELL UNDERSTOOD.
Narrator: SOME SCIENTISTS
BELIEVE THE ORIGINS
OF THESE MYSTERIOUS ICE
BOMBS ARE EXTRATERRESTRIAL.
Walcek: MAYBE IT'S THE CORE OF AN ICY COMET
THAT RE-ENTERED THE ATMOSPHERE
AND THIS IS THE PIECE OF WHAT SURVIVED.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
COMETS ARE SOMETIMES
MANY KILOMETERS ACROSS.
IF YOU HAVE A BIG BALL OF ICE
HITTING THE EARTH AT HUGE SPEED,
IT'S GONNA DO A LOT OF DAMAGE.
[ EXPLOSION ]
Narrator: OTHER SCIENTISTS BELIEVE
THAT THE LETHAL MEGACRYOMETEORS
ARE AN EXTREME WEATHER
EVENT IN THE TROPOPAUSE,
MILES ABOVE THE EARTH.
BUT THE MYSTERY IS HOW A GIANT
BLOCK OF ICE CAN GROW SO BIG.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
IN ORDER TO HOLD A 45-POUND HUNK OF ICE
UP IN THE ATMOSPHERE,
YOU WOULD NEED A HUGE
UPDRAFT CARRYING VERY MOIST AIR
UP TO COLDER REGIONS OF THE
ATMOSPHERE WHERE IT FREEZES.
♪♪
Narrator: METEOROLOGIST CHRIS
BELL DESIGNS AN EXPERIMENT
TO FIND OUT WHAT WIND SPEED
WOULD BE NEEDED ABOVE LONDON
TO KEEP A 45-POUND BLOCK
OF ICE SUSPENDED IN THE AIR
BEFORE CRASHING DOWN TO EARTH. ALL RIGHT.
WE'RE TURNING ON THE WIND TUNNEL NOW
AND WE'RE GONNA BE SIMULATING WIND SPEEDS
OF UP TO 30 TO 40 MILES PER HOUR,
WHICH IS GALE FORCE WINDS.
AND, AT THE MOMENT, THE
BLOCK OF ICE IS NOT MOVING.
Narrator: BELL CRANKS UP THE WIND MACHINE.
WE'RE AT 140 MILES AN
HOUR, AND THERE WE GO.
WE CAN SEE THE BLOCK OF ICE
IS NOW BEING LIFTED INTO THE AIR
AT 140 MILES AN HOUR.
THIS SUGGESTS THAT THE ICE
COULD HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED IN
THE AIR BY POWERFUL UPDRAFTS,
BUT BELL SPOTS A PROBLEM.
THOSE ARE THE TYPES OF
WINDS THAT WE WOULD ONLY FIND
IN SOME OF THE STRONGEST
HURRICANES ON THE PLANET.
AND IT'S JUST NOT THE TYPE OF CONDITIONS
WE WOULD HAVE SEEN
OVER LONDON AT THAT TIME.
THE ORIGIN OF THE ICE
BOMB REMAINS A MYSTERY.
IT'S ABSOLUTELY WORRYING. IF
THESE CHUNKS OF ICE THAT BIG
CAN FALL FROM THE SKY WITHOUT WARNING,
THEN ANY ONE OF US
COULD BE HIT AT ANY TIME.
[ ICE SHATTERING ]
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
Narrator: IN A WAR-TORN CITY UNDER SIEGE,
A CEASEFIRE'S NERVOUS CALM IS SHATTERED
BY AN INCOMING FIERY ORB.
PEOPLE MUST HAVE LOOKED UP AND THOUGHT,
"THIS IS THE END OF THE WORLD."
Narrator: IS IT AN ATTACK
BY THE ENEMY AT THE GATE,
OR IS IT SOMETHING EVEN MORE TERRIFYING...
A VISITOR FROM ANOTHER WORLD?
DON'T KNOW WHERE IT CAME FROM,
DON'T KNOW WHAT ITS IMPACT COULD BE,
BUT IT'S BAD AND IT'S
COMING IN YOUR DIRECTION.
♪♪
[ BEEPING ]
Narrator: CITY OF DONETSK, UKRAINE,
FEBRUARY 24, 2015.
[ MISSILES LAUNCHING ]
FOR OVER A YEAR, THE COUNTRY
HAS BEEN TEARING ITSELF APART.
[ GUNFIRE ]
ITS CITIZENS ARE USED TO COWERING IN FEAR
AS THE GLOW OF MISSILES FILL THE NIGHT SKY.
BUT THEN COMES A CEASEFIRE
AND AN EERIE QUIET DESCENDS ON THE CITY.
♪♪
LINDSEY MORAN, A FORMER
CLANDESTINE OFFICER FOR THE CIA,
IS AN EXPERT ON MODERN WAR ZONES.
Moran: THIS CEASEFIRE
WAS VERY TENUOUS, AT BEST.
AND NOBODY KNEW IF IT
WAS REALLY GOING TO HOLD.
BUT IT WAS A DANGEROUS,
DANGEROUS TIME IN THE UKRAINE.
Narrator: DAY SIX OF THE CEASEFIRE,
10:50 P.M...
A SURVEILLANCE CAMERA SPYING ON THE CITY
CAPTURES A FIERY OBJECT NONE
OF THE WAR-WEARY INHABITANTS
HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE.
Wallace: SO YOU HAVE THIS
BALL OF LIGHT UP ABOVE THE CITY.
IS IT A FRIEND OR IS IT A FOE?
SEEING SOMETHING LIKE THIS,
THE IMMEDIATE THOUGHT MIGHT BE,
"THAT'S A U.F.O."
♪♪
Narrator: THIS ISN'T THE FIRST
U.F.O. TO SPOOK THE UKRAINE.
IN 1982, REPORTS OF A
LARGE, MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
HOVERING ABOVE A NUCLEAR
BASE NEARLY STARTS WORLD WAR III.
SENIOR BASE OFFICIALS CLAIM THAT THE U.F.O.
TAKES CONTROL OF THE MISSILE
LAUNCH CODES FOR 15 SECONDS,
PLUNGING THE MILITARY INTO RED ALERT.
NO EXPLANATION HAS EVER BEEN
FOUND FOR THE INCREDIBLE EVENT.
Moran: THE PEOPLE OF
DONETSK, THEY MUST HAVE
LOOKED UP AND THOUGHT,
"THIS IS THE END OF THE WORLD."
Narrator: COMING UP... RESIDENTS OF DONETSK
FEAR A WEAPON OF MASS DESTRUCTION
IS HEADING THEIR WAY.
IT'S LIKE NO WEAPON I'VE EVER SEEN BEFORE.
Narrator: AND THE TREE THAT GUSHES BLOOD.
IT'S LIKE A HORROR MOVIE, IT REALLY IS.
TREES DON'T BLEED.
[ SAW BUZZES ]
[ BEEPING ]
♪♪
Narrator: A DAZZLING,
UNIDENTIFIED ORB OF LIGHT
IN THE SKY IS APPROACHING
THE WAR-TORN UKRAINIAN
CITY OF DONETSK.
♪♪
MILITARY ANALYST CARLO MUÑOZ
FEARS THE FRAGILE CEASEFIRE
IS ABOUT TO BE SHATTERED.
Muñoz: IF YOU'RE A SOLDIER IN DONETSK
AND YOU SEE THIS LIGHT ORB KIND OF
MOVING TOWARDS YOUR POSITION,
YOUR AUTOMATIC ASSUMPTION
IS THAT IT'S A WEAPON.
IT'S A WEAPON BEING USED
AGAINST YOU BY YOUR ENEMIES
TO KILL YOU.
Narrator: PACO CHIERICI, A
FORMER U.S. NAVY FIGHTER PILOT,
INSPECTS THE FOOTAGE.
HE BELIEVES THE OBJECT IS
ACTUALLY MOVING TOO SLOWLY
TO BE ANY KIND OF INCOMING MISSILE.
Chierici: WHAT SEEMS TO BE A TIME LAPSE,
THERE'S NO TIME STAMP ON THE VIDEO ITSELF,
SO IT'S HARD TO KNOW EXACTLY
HOW LONG IT TAKES PLACE,
BUT IT SEEMS TO BE A
MATTER OF MANY MINUTES,
JUST BY LOOKING AT THE CARS, YOU KNOW,
THE RATE OF THE CAR LIGHTS THAT GO BY.
♪♪
Narrator: WHEN SLOWED
DOWN, THE FOOTAGE SHOWS
THAT THE OBJECT TRAVERSES THE SKYLINE
IN APPROXIMATELY EIGHT MINUTES.
Moran: IF IT'S A WEAPON,
IT'S LIKE NO WEAPON I'VE EVER SEEN BEFORE,
BECAUSE IT'S REALLY GOING THROUGH THE SKY
AT A SNAIL'S PACE.
[ GUNFIRE ]
Narrator: INSTEAD, MORAN
BELIEVES THE FOOTAGE
COULD SHOW A WEAPON
DESIGNED TO WRECK THE MORALE
OF THE BESIEGED CITY'S JITTERY INHABITANTS.
PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE HAS
BEEN USED THROUGHOUT HISTORY.
SO, PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE
INCLUDES DOING THINGS
TO INTIMIDATE OR UNSETTLE A POPULATION.
[ GUNFIRE ] [ HEAVY METAL PLAYS ]
[ SOLDIER SHOUTS ]
Narrator: IN PRESENT-DAY AFGHANISTAN,
THE U.S. ARMY BLASTS OUT
METALLICA TO STRIKE FEAR
IN THE TALIBAN.
NEW LASER TECHNOLOGIES ALLOW MOVING IMAGES
TO BE PROJECTED ONTO CLOUDS FROM AIRCRAFT.
IN ONE PARTICULARLY
OUTLANDISH PLAN BY THE U.S.,
THEY WERE GOING TO PROJECT A
GOD ABOVE AN ENEMY STRONGHOLD
TO SCARE THEM INTO GIVING UP.
Muñoz: SEEING SOMETHING COMPLETELY ALIEN
TO WHAT YOU'VE BEEN SURROUNDED BY,
IT RAISES THE FEAR LEVEL BY A FACTOR OF 10.
Narrator: MILITARY ANALYST CARLO MUÑOZ
HAS SEEN THE USE OF INTENSE LIGHT TO CREATE
PANIC IN WAR ZONES.
Muñoz: THE U.S. MILITARY HAS EXPERIMENTED
WITH TECHNOLOGIES TO BLIND OR CONFUSE.
THEY WERE CALLED DAZZLERS.
ANY WEAPON DESIGNED TO
BLIND A CITY THE SIZE OF DONETSK
WOULD LIKELY HAVE TAKEN OUT
THE CAMERA THAT TOOK THIS VIDEO.
SO, I HAVE TO ASSUME
THAT SOMETHING LIKE THIS IS
NOT WHAT WE'RE SEEING RIGHT NOW.
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
♪♪
Narrator: EXPERTS STRUGGLE
TO EXPLAIN THE COMPOSITION
OF THE MYSTERIOUS ORB.
IT'S BURNING SO BRIGHTLY
AND IT'S MOVING SO SLOWLY,
IT'S ALMOST LIKE A MINI MOON
LIGHTING UP THE NIGHT SKY.
Narrator: CHEMIST ANDREA
SELLA BELIEVES THERE IS ONE
OBVIOUS CANDIDATE FOR THE CHEMICAL COMPOUND
THAT CAN CREATE SUCH BRIGHT LIGHT.
Sella: COULD IT BE THAT WHITE
PHOSPHORUS IS BEING USED HERE?
IT'S WELL KNOWN FOR
THE FACT THAT IT IGNITES
SPONTANEOUSLY IN AIR.
[ GUNFIRE ]
Narrator: WHITE PHOSPHORUS HAS
BEEN USED AS A TERRIFYING WEAPON.
IT BURNS CONTINUOUSLY AT 1,500 DEGREES.
IF IT STRIKES A VICTIM,
IT CAN MELT SKIN FROM BONE LIKE BUTTER.
PHOSPHORUS HAS BEEN BANNED
UNDER THE GENEVA CONVENTION
AND BASICALLY DEEMED A CHEMICAL WEAPON.
Narrator: BUT MORAN REVEALS
THAT WHILE PHOSPHORUS
CANNOT BE USED IN WEAPONS,
IT IS STILL USED IN WARFARE.
IT DOES HAVE A MILITARY PURPOSE.
IT CAN BE USED TO
ILLUMINATE A BATTLE SPACE.
[ GUNFIRE ]
IT DOES SHOW SOME MORE CHARACTERISTICS
OF AN ILLUMINATION FLARE.
THIS IS IN COMMON USE BY MILITARIES
IN THE UNITED STATES, IN
RUSSIA, OTHER WORLD POWERS.
Narrator: IF THE RUSSIANS USE PHOSPHORUS
TO LIGHT UP DONETSK IN
ADVANCE OF A NIGHT ATTACK,
THEN THE CEASEFIRE WILL BE OVER.
FOR SOMETHING WEIRD,
GLOWING, AND UNEXPLAINABLE
TO BE MENACINGLY
TRAVERSING OVER THEIR CITY SKY,
IT MUST HAVE BEEN REALLY SCARY.
♪♪
[ CAMERAS WHIRRING ]
[ CHAINSAW BUZZING ]
Narrator: NOW, A CHAINSAW CUTS INTO A TREE
AND IT SPURTS CRIMSON BLOOD.
IT'S BIZARRE, IT'S UNNATURAL,
AND IT'S BLEEDING ALL OVER THE PLACE.
TREES DON'T BLEED.
Narrator: IF IT'S NOT THE
TRUNK ITSELF THAT'S BLEEDING,
IS IT SOMETHING IT ATE FOR BREAKFAST?
[ SCREAMING ]
A MAN-EATING TREE USES ITS TENDRILS
TO ENSNARE PREY, INCLUDING
LARGE PREY LIKE PEOPLE,
AND IT CAN DRAIN THEIR BLOOD.
Woman: THIS LOOKS LIKE ABSOLUTE CARNAGE,
LIKE A CHAINSAW MASSACRE.
Narrator: CHINA, FUJIAN
PROVINCE, SEPTEMBER 2015...
A LUMBERJACK SAWING A TREE
TRUNK TRIGGERS A BLOODBATH.
IT'S ALMOST LIKE HE HIT AN ARTERY OR A VEIN
INSIDE THE TREE, BUT
TREES DON'T HAVE ARTERIES,
SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON.
I HAVE NEVER MET A TREE THAT EVEN BLED ONCE
A LITTLE BIT, LET ALONE
SPEWED LIKE BLEH, BLEH...
SPEWING BLOOD AND GUTS.
IT'S LIKE A HORROR MOVIE.
WE KNOW WHAT TREE SAP LOOKS LIKE.
THIS DOESN'T LOOK LIKE TREE SAP.
SAP COMES OUT LIKE DRIP, DRIP, DRIP.
THIS IS LIKE... [ EXPLODING NOISE ]
THE BLOOD JUST COMES GUSHING OUT.
♪♪
Narrator: INCREDIBLY,
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGIST
DEBORAH HYDE DISCOVERS
THIS IS NOT THE FIRST REPORT
OF A TREE WITH A BLOODY HISTORY.
19th CENTURY EXPLORERS MAPPING
THE JUNGLES OF MADAGASCAR
RETURNED WITH TERRIFYING
STORIES OF A MAN-EATING TREE.
Hyde: IT ALLEGEDLY WAS SACRIFICED TO.
THERE WAS A WOMAN THAT
WAS TAKEN UP, AND ITS TENDRILS
GATHERED HER AND IT ATE HER.
Narrator: MORE RECENT
REPORTS DESCRIBE A CREEPER
IN CENTRAL AMERICA WITH
A THIRST FOR HUMAN FLESH.
♪♪
IT'S THE TALE OF THE SO-CALLED
VAMPIRE VINE OF NICARAGUA,
WHICH USES ITS TENDRILS TO ENSNARE PREY,
INCLUDING LARGE PREY LIKE PEOPLE,
AND IT CAN DRAIN THEIR BLOOD.
Narrator: NO SPECIMENS OF THE VAMPIRE VINE
HAVE EVER BEEN FOUND.
BUT HAVE LUMBERJACKS IN CHINA STUMBLED UPON
A TREE WITH A TASTE FOR BLOOD?
[ WHIRRING ]
♪♪
COMING UP... BLOODY BOTANY
GIVES EXPERTS THE SHIVERS.
NATURE IS WEIRD AND SOMETIMES DISGUSTING.
[ BEEPING ]
[ SAW BUZZING ]
Narrator: A CHAINSAW
CUTTING A TREE IN CHINA
TRIGGERS A FOUNTAIN OF RED.
IT'S NOT JUST OOZING A
BIT, IT'S ACTUALLY GUSHING.
♪♪
Narrator: THE FOOTAGE
COMES TO THE ATTENTION
OF BIOLOGIST JEFFREY DEAN.
DEAN CONFIRMS THAT FLESH-EATING PLANTS
AREN'T JUST A CREEPY PLOT
DEVICE IN HORROR MOVIES.
THERE ARE A FEW HUNDRED
SPECIES OF CARNIVOROUS PLANTS.
Narrator: THE MOST RAVENOUS
THRIVES IN THE WETLANDS
OF NORTH AND SOUTH CAROLINA
AND TRAPS LIVING CREATURES
WITH BOOBY TRAP HAIRS ON ITS LEAVES.
WHEN AN INVADING INSECT
OR BEETLE TOUCHES A HAIR,
IT TRIGGERS THE LEAVES TO SLAM SHUT
LIKE A SPRING-COIL TRAP.
IT THEN BREAKS DOWN ITS
PRISONER FOR CONSUMPTION
BY RELEASING DIGESTIVE ENZYMES.
IT'S CALLED THE VENUS FLY TRAP.
ONCE THE INSECT'S
TRAPPED, IT'S GOING TO DIE
AND IT'S GOING TO DEGRADE.
AND AS IT COMES APART, IT RELEASES NITROGEN
THAT THE PLANT IS ABLE
TO ABSORB AND FEED ON.
Narrator: THE FOUR-FOOT HIGH PITCHER PLANT,
DISCOVERED IN THE
JUNGLES OF SOUTHEAST ASIA,
HAS AN EVEN MORE VORACIOUS APPETITE.
THE SKELETAL REMAINS OF
MICE AND LIZARDS AND SNAKES
HAVE BEEN FOUND IN THE BOTTOMS OF THESE
LARGER PITCHER PLANTS.
♪♪
Narrator: FOR DEAN, A
CARNIVOROUS PLANT'S ABILITY
TO EAT A CREATURE RAISES
A TANTALIZING POSSIBILITY,
THAT A PLANT COULD DEVELOP
THE ABILITY TO CONSUME A HUMAN.
IF THERE WERE SUCH A
THING AS A VENUS FLY TRAP
WITH A TRAP BIG ENOUGH THAT
A HUMAN COULD WALK INTO IT,
THERE'S NOTHING THAT WOULD
PREVENT THAT LEAF FROM
EVENTUALLY ABSORBING
YOU WHEN YOU PASSED AWAY.
THAT'S JUST THE NATURE OF HOW IT OPERATES.
Narrator: THE AVERAGE HUMAN BODY CONTAINS
FOUR POUNDS OF NITROGEN, MORE THAN ENOUGH
TO KEEP A TREE HEALTHY.
BUT DEAN DOUBTS THAT THERE
ARE MAN-MUNCHING TREES.
THERE'S NEVER BEEN ANY EVIDENCE AT ALL
OF A PLANT THAT WOULD BE
LARGE ENOUGH TO TRAP AND DEVOUR
A CREATURE THE SIZE OF A HUMAN BEING.
[ WAILING ]
[ BEEPING, CAMERA WHIRS ]
♪♪
Narrator: ZOOLOGIST TARA PIRIE
ANALYZES THE HUGE QUANTITY OF BLOOD
AND CONSIDERS IF THE LOGGER
MAY HAVE SLICED THROUGH
AN ANIMAL INSIDE THE TREE.
Pirie: USUALLY SNAKES ARE VERY
SENSITIVE TO THEIR SURROUNDINGS.
HOWEVER, WHEN IT IS IN HIBERNATION,
OBVIOUSLY, IT IS VERY
LETHARGIC, VERY SLOW MOVING.
AND THERE HAS BEEN
OCCASIONS WHERE PEOPLE HAVE
CHOPPED DOWN TREES AND CUT SNAKES IN HALF.
Man: OH, MY GOD!
Narrator: BUT ZOOLOGIST
ROLAND KAYS' ANALYSIS
OF THE AMOUNT OF RED
LIQUID COMING OUT OF THE TREE
CASTS DOUBT ON THE SNAKE THEORY.
WHEN YOU SEE ALL THIS GOOP
COMING OUT OF THIS TREE,
YOU HAVE TO ASK, WHAT
SIZE ANIMAL WOULD IT TAKE
TO MAKE THAT MUCH BLOOD?
SO IT WOULD'VE HAD TO
BEEN TOO GIANT OF AN ANIMAL
TO MAKE THIS MUCH BLOOD,
AND IT JUST COULDN'T HAVE FIT IN THAT TREE.
Narrator: JEFFREY DEAN
STEPS THROUGH THE FOOTAGE
FRAME BY FRAME.
HE IDENTIFIES THE TREE AS A EUCALYPTUS.
A FULLY GROWN EUCALYPTUS TREE CAN CONTAIN
OVER FIVE GALLONS OF SAP,
AND ITS MOST ACTIVE INGREDIENT
IS A GUM CALLED KINO,
WHOSE COLOR IS BLOOD RED.
THIS RED SAP, OR KINO MATERIAL,
IS USED IN A WIDE VARIETY
OF TRADITIONAL MEDICINES.
Narrator: THE SAP IN THE FOOTAGE
IS EASILY MISTAKEN FOR BLOOD,
DUE TO A UNIQUE QUALITY BOTH FLUIDS SHARE.
SAP AND BLOOD BOTH HAVE
CLOTTING COMPOUNDS TO PREVENT
THE LIQUID FROM JUST FLOWING
OUT OF THE TREE OR THE BODY.
SO THAT COULD BE WHY THE
SAP LOOKS LIKE THE CONSISTENCY
OF CLOTTED BLOOD.
IT'S LIKE WHEN YOU BITE
INTO THAT JELLY DONUT
AND YOU HIT THE POCKET WITH THE JELLY IN IT
AND IT COMES SQUIRTING OUT
AND GETS ALL OVER YOUR SLACKS.
♪♪
NATURE IS WEIRD AND SOMETIMES DISGUSTING.