Residents in Texarkana, Texas, a city located in the farthest upper-right corner of the state, experienced a rare phenomenon on Wednesday afternoon after fish began raining down from the sky.
There were thunderstorms moving throughout the East Texas city on Wednesday afternoon when a storm hit a used car dealership called Orr Maxx.
James Audirsch who was working at the time said, he looked outside and was confused and shocked to see fish falling from the sky.
James told KXAN News that around 4:30 p.m, “There was a loud crack of thunder and when we opened up the bay door, I looked outside and it was raining real hard and a fish hit the ground. And then I said, ‘It’s raining fish!’ Brad was like, ‘No it’s not,’ and I’m like, ‘No, it really is!’ and fish were dropping here and everywhere.”
Once the storm passed, it looked like a post-apocalyptic event took place because there were four to five-inch silver and white in colored fish scattered throughout the parking lot of the dealership.
James said the fish bodies stretched from the dealership across the street to the tire shop next door.
Other residents told Texarcana Gazette that at least four other locations in the city experienced the same type of fishy downpour.
Residents said that they found one to 30 fish raining down in their respective properties.
The City of Texarkana, Texas shared a post on Facebook saying that the phenomenon was not a joke and said that the aquatic creatures got swept up in strong storm winds from the nearby lakes.
In the comments of the post, many people began to share photos of the fish they found.
The City of Texarkana, Texas wrote on Facebook, “Animal rain is a phenomenon that occurs when small water animals like frogs, crabs, and small fish are swept up in waterspouts or drafts that occur on the surface of the earth. They are then rained down at the same time as the rain. While it’s uncommon, it happens, as evidenced in several places in Texarkana today.”