On this day last year, mystery enveloped Ellesmere Port as residents reported sightings of a meteor shower, following a loud unexplained noise the previous evening.
On the morning of January 16, several locals noticed what they described as a meteor shower while commuting to work.
One resident captured images of the phenomenon while stuck in traffic, drawing attention to the spectacle unfolding in the sky.
The unusual occurrences began the night before, on January 15, when a loud bang was heard around 7pm.
This noise reportedly caused shaking in nearby homes, leading residents to speculate about its origin.
Members of the Pride in the Port Facebook group remarked that the sound seemed akin to "some kind of explosion."
Toni Wikeley, a Ledsham resident, shared her experience describing the sequence of events.
She had initially seen some chatter on Facebook regarding a loud noise and houses ‘shaking’, but had not experienced this herself.
However, the following morning she saw the strange display during her commute.
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Toni said: "I came out of my house this morning and within two minutes was stuck in traffic.
"I thought ‘what is going on?’ and then I could see that everyone was looking up.
"To me, it was a meteor shower.
"It couldn’t be plane chemtrails or anything like that," she added.
"One of them appeared to be falling completely vertically.
"They were all over the sky."
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Toni stopped the car and put her hazards on to take another look.
Toni’s son, 11-year-old Charlie, is fascinated by space and science and was equally taken aback by the display.
“Even he said, ‘wow Mum’,” Toni added.
“He was out of the car and then asking me to send him the photos. He’s asked me to find out what it was!”
This story was first published in The Standard on January 16, 2025.
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