A large chunk of what appeared to be dirty ice crashed through the roof of a backyard dwelling in Whittier on Friday morning, startling a tenant and leaving police and the homeowner unsure where it came from.
Homeowner Thania Magana said she received a frantic call from her tenant, Yuder Grau, around 11:18 a.m.
“He’s like, Thania, there was an explosion,” Magana said.
When she arrived at the accessory dwelling unit, she found debris scattered throughout the living area and a large gaping hole in the roof.
“So it came through here and it shattered but there was a big piece right on the couch and then one on the table. And a couple of pieces here,” she said.
Grau began sweeping up the debris and placed the largest chunks on the counter. That’s when he noticed a foul smell coming from the ice pieces.
“We just said let’s stuff it in a bag, put it in the freezer and see what it is,” Magana said.
Magana later posted a photo of the mysterious chunk in a local Facebook group.
“Some people were like, ‘Oh Artemis II is gonna land today, if that has anything to do with it?’” she said.
A more likely explanation, she said, could involve aircraft flying overhead.
“If you look outside, every five minutes or so, we get a plane or two, either going to Long Beach or going to LAX,” Magana said.
NBC4 meteorologist David Biggar, who is also a licensed private pilot, said debris falling from aircraft can sometimes involve frozen waste or water systems.
“Depending on what it is, it could potentially be gray water. Again, that’s stuff that’s coming out of like the galley sink. So you’re dumping something down the galley sink or maybe the hand wash in the lavatory,” Biggar said.
He added that accumulating condensation can sometimes be vented overboard and that aircraft systems are designed to prevent ice from forming.
“These things are heated to prevent ice from forming,” Biggar said, though he noted those heaters could fail.
Another possibility could involve a mechanical issue.
“There can also be something like maybe a leaky valve or leaky seal somewhere,” he said.
Biggar said that in such cases moisture can accumulate and freeze to the aircraft while it is flying at high altitude, where temperatures are extremely cold, before eventually breaking off.
Magana said she reviewed flight activity around the time of the incident and narrowed it down to three planes that had flown overhead — one operated by Southwest Airlines and another two by Delta Air Lines.
Both airlines told NBC4 there were no reports of irregularities or maintenance issues on those flights.
Magana said she is grateful Grau had decided to take a mid-morning nap in his bedroom rather than on the couch where he had been sitting minutes earlier.
“I keep replaying it and just thinking of the what if,” she said. “The first thing that comes to mind is that he probably wouldn’t be here with us.”
Magana said firefighters checked the structure of the home after the incident. With rain expected, she plans to cover the damaged roof with a tarp.
The Federal Aviation Administration said it had not yet received a report about the incident, but acknowledged the agency would look into all such reports.
NASA also has not responded to a request for comment.
Biggar said the debris was unlikely to have been hail.
