California

‘Flaming Basketball' Caught on Cam Falling From the Sky May Have Been Meteorite That Set Ablaze California Home

Dustin Procita was in his Nevada County home Friday with his two dogs when he heard "a big bang" in his usually quiet community, he told NBC affiliate KCRA.

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A possible meteorite caught on video that “looks like a flaming basketball” falling from the sky may have destroyed a Northern California man’s home last week.

Dustin Procita was in his home with his two dogs Friday in Nevada County, about 60 miles northeast of Sacramento, when he heard "a big bang" in his usually quiet community, he told NBC affiliate NBC affiliate KCRA of Sacramento.

The American Meteor Society said it received 133 reports of a bright meteor, also known as a fireball event, that occurred over Arizona and Nevada on Monday.

The Penn Valley Fire Department got a call about the fire at around 7:26 p.m. and responded to the home on Englebright Dam Road. With assistance from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, the fire was contained almost three hours later, Cal Fire spokesperson Mary Eldridge told NBC News.

A dog died in the fire, which consumed a house, a travel trailer and a pickup truck, Eldridge said.

Authorities are investigating whether a meteorite could have fallen from the sky onto Procita's home.

Read the full story on NBCNews.com

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