Meteorite Crashes to Earth and Injures Indians
BHUBANESWAR, India (AFP) — Five people were injured and two houses gutted when a meteorite crashed to earth in eastern India after panicking hundreds of villagers as it shot across the sky, reports and residents said.
The meteorite crashed Saturday in a remote village near the Bay of Bengal in the state of Orissa, local media said, adding five people were sent to hospital with injuries.
The provincial revenue minister, Biswa Bhusan Harichandan, said authorities were waiting for more concrete information about damages or casualties.
The meteorite lit up the sky and caused windows to rattle as passed overhead, sending hundreds of people rushing outside unsure what was happening, a resident of Kendrapara town said by telephone.
“It was all there for just a few seconds but it was like daylight everywhere,” he said.
Scientists plan to study the remains of the meteorite.
“Such celestial occurrences are common in space but not visible to the naked eye. This is a rare phenomenon in this region,” said Jaydev Kar, a scientist at the Pathani Samant Planetorium in Orissa’s capital Bhubaneswar.
—–
On the Net:
More science, space, and technology from RedNova
Copyright © 2003 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AFP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of Agence France Presse.