People In LA Were Convinced They Saw A Meteor Or UFO Crashing Through Downtown, But Appearances Are Deceiving

Anyone near downtown Los Angeles on the evening of Wednesday, March 20th, may have just thought the Earth was in a bit more danger than we're generally comfortable with. Countless people looked up that night to see what appeared to be a meteor falling from the sky into the greater LA area, and many captured video of the event.

On social media, LA residents looked to each other for confirmation that they weren't crazy!

It quickly became clear SOMETHING had flown over LA, leaving a fiery trail in its wake.

One Twitter user saw the meteor being circled by helicopters after its fall.

Some people online believed the meteor may have extraterrestrial origins.

In truth, the fiery comet was a lot less exciting than it looked: what appeared to be a meteor was actually men in wing suits holding a flare.

It turns out the "meteor" was just a practical effect for a commercial shoot, which is not uncommon in Hollywood.

Some Twitter users were a bit skeptical of this explanation...

...but video evidence seems to back up the police's official report.

Still, many will never forget the day a meteor almost crashed into downtown LA. Watch for scenes inspired by the real-world event in disaster movies premiering next year.