By John M. Sinclair

A bizarre scenario has developed over an alleged meteorite crash in Peru near the town of Carancas about 800 miles south of Lima. Locals saw an object fsll on saturday that was apparently large enough to make a crater at least 55 feet wide and 16 feet deep that immediately filled with 'boiling' water suggesting that the meteorite fell on land with a very high water table, and the 'boiling' suggests the release of gases. Luisa Macedo, a volcanologist for the Geological, Mining and Metallurgical Institute of Peru, confirmed that the meteorite is a chondrite, a class of stony meteorite that makes up the most common type of meteorite.

Chondrites are almost universally harmless. They contain normal minerals and metals that are found in abundance on the earth, including olivine, iron and nickel. Very little, if any, exotic materials exist in these meteorites. They are so common, in fact, that they are collected privately around the world and samples can even be purchased on Ebay. It is highly unlikely that the meteorite itself would be causing the illnesses or the release of gases, though one rare type of chondrite known as a carbonaceous chondrite, believed to originate from comets, can release strong smells when found soon after falling. 

On September 28, 1969 just such a meteorite fell in the city of Murchison, Victoria, Australia. The meteorite smelled very strongly at the time of its fall, described as being like gasoline or ether. While no one seems to have became ill from the odor, the meteorite was found to contain organic compounds, such as amino acids, leading to theories that the building blocks of life on earth were delivered by meteorites. Its possible that the Peruvian fall may be a carbonaceous chondrite, and may contain organic compounds that are producing smells so strong that they are making people ill.

Local villagers are claiming to have found chunks of what appear to be silver or lead, and they theorize that these metals, which would not normally be found in meteorites, are responsible for contaminating the water supply, given that the meteorite seems to have exposed it when it made its crater.

Lastly, the crater may not have originated with a meteorite at all, and that the observed fireball was an unrelated event. They crater may be due to some type volcanic event that is releasing gases. Over 600 are now claiming to be sick, and the illness is also blamed in the death of a cow and other livestock. Local police are working to keep the public out of the area until the cause of the illness is determined. Stay tuned to the paranormal report for more details as they come available.

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