Post by Graveyardbride on Dec 1, 2013 14:20:21 GMT -5
Mysterious Booms in Philadelphia, Arizona and Connecticut
Police say source of booms still unexplained
PHILADELPHIA – Police are puzzled by reports of booms heard throughout Philadelphia last week.
Investigator Fredesz Moore said reports came in last week from some residents of the Woodland Hills neighborhood about hearing booms late at night.
"We got a call on Saturday about booms around Azalea Drive and Chaney Avenue," he said. "Our officers went out there but couldn't find anything."
Moore added that the sounds might have originated in the country but were picked up by city residents.
Earlier this year it was discovered that a similar boom was caused by an explosive target used to blow up a beaver dam in the Williamsville community.
The targets, which are often available for purchase at pawn shops and gun shows, explode when hit by a high-powered rifle round.
Source: The Neshoba Democrat, November 27, 2013.
More mysterious 'booms' reported in Verde Valley area
CHINO VALLEY, Ariz. – Last year, about this same time, residents in Verde Valley heard some mysterious, unexplained booms.
Reports of similar booms are once again being called in to the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office. This time, primarily from the town of Chino Valley.
"The way to describe it is like a hammer being slammed down next to the house," said Chino Valley resident Chris Schaich. "It was two hard hits and the house jumped, if felt like a jump, and I could hear the windows rattle a little bit, some glasses rattled."
Schaich lives in quiet cul-de-sac in the heart of Chino Valley. He said the first mysterious sound happened Monday around 10:20 a.m. and the second one at 8:40 a.m. Tuesday. He said it was a vertical jolt and after having lived through plenty of earthquakes while a resident in Southern California, he was sure it wasn't one.
No earthquakes were reported in Arizona by the U.S. Geologic Survey on Tuesday.
The Verde Valley area had the same type of mysterious sounds about this time last year near Sedona. Last year, the calls went to the sheriff's office and the fire department.
The Yavapai county Sheriff's Office on Tuesday said it checked out the reports.
"Deputies conducted searches on both sides of Mingus Mountain, Prescott and Verde basins, and the source of the booms is classified unfounded," the YCSO said in an email.
CBS 5 News asked Schaich if he finds any mystery in the fact that last year around this same time, similar mysterious booms were heard by other residents in the Verde Valley.
Schaich said there is some military activity that takes place with the U.S. Air Force flying planes over the area.
"It is kind of strange that it would be re-occurring and, in that case, maybe it indicates some sort of man-made source," Schaich said. "Who knows?"
Source: Karla Navarette, KPHO News, November 27, 2013.
Mystery booms shake things up in Stonington
STONINGTON, Conn. – Police officials have not been able to identify the source of three loud noises that sounded like explosions and shook houses in Stonington Friday.
“We received multiple phone calls from people in the Old Mystic area about hearing three different loud booms or explosions that shook their homes,” Stonington police Captain Jerry Desmond said. “We responded with the fire department and searched the whole area.”
Desmond said police checked on construction sites and power lines in the area but have not determined what could have caused the noises.
“We have no reports of homes being damaged by these booms and no reports of electricity being out,” he said. “There are no incidents that people have reported that would be the cause of these loud noises.”
Area residents said they heard three loud booms each about 15 minutes apart, beginning at about 9:15 a.m. Friday.
“I’ve never been in an earthquake, but the third one felt like what I think an earthquake would feel like,” Nancy Peta, of Old Mystic, said. “It sounded like a propane tank had exploded, or a plane crash.”
Peta said the booms shook her house and prompted neighbors to congregate on the street to see if anyone knew what had happened. She said she did not notice any smoke in the area.
State police from Troop E were sweeping the area, including Ledyard and North Stonington, a spokesman said, but hadn’t found the source for the reports of an explosion.
Desmond said police officers and firefighters are still investigating.
At 9:18 a.m., the Old Mystic Fire Department tweeted that firefighters were dispatched to 24 Main St. for a reported explosion.
“We are dealing with a situation in Old Mystic concerning possible explosions,” Stonington First Selectman Ed Haberek wrote on Facebook. He said the police and fire departments were on scene investigating.
A spokeswoman from Connecticut Light & Power said the utility company did not have any problems with its equipment in the area.
Source: Colin Young, TheDay, November 30, 2013.