Mostly Cloudy With a Chance of Fish

That’s what the weather report for Texarkarna, Texas should have said as the old year ended, because it did, in fact, rain fish on December 29.

“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,” the City of Texarkana’s official Facebook page helpfully explained. “They are then rained down at the same time as the rain.”

Assuring its followers that “this isn’t a joke,” the city invited all to send fish pics. Most commenters shared images of fish they caught the conventional way – with a rod – or fish they were frying (not flying). Ha ha.

But it did happen. Texarkana resident Tim Brigham told CNN affiliate KSLA he thought it was both “pretty cool” to see tiny fish falling from the sky as well as useful -- he said he “started to get me a bucket and pick them up for fishing bait.”

Photo credit: City of Texarkana, Texas