All language subtitles for Strange.Evidence.S05E08.Revenge.of.the.Monster.Wolf.1080p.MAX.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-BETHELL_track3_[eng]

[narrator] Worldwide,
36 billion cameras
are watching us.

On our streets, at work
and in our homes.

They capture things
that seems impossible.

Science says
this shouldn't happen.

[man] Do you see that?

[narrator] Experts carry out
forensic analysis

of these unusual events.

Wow. What a blast!

[woman 1 screaming]

This doesn't make sense.

There has to be
some sort of explanation.

What else is going on here?

[narrator] Coming up...

A mysterious blast
flash fries a noodle shop.

So what we could be
looking at is some sort of
covert demolition.

It's insane.

What could have caused
that much destruction in
a matter of seconds?

-[dog barking]
-[narrator] In the forests
of Canada,

have workmen stirred
a legendary monster?

This is sort of like
the ultimate werewolf.

Whatever is causing this
change in temperament

-could be deadly.
-[dog barking]

[narrator] And in
the line of fire...

Wow! What is that?

An unholy flame burns
across a sacred city.

That's not what you expect
to see on a walk in the park.

-[narrator]
Bizarre phenomenon...
-Oh, my God. [gasps]

-...mysteries caught
on camera.
-[woman 2 screaming]

[narrator] What's the truth
behind this

Strange Evidence?

Shanghai, eastern China.

May 29th, 2020.

It's mid afternoon
at an unassuming
noodle restaurant.

-Then...
-[explosion]

...an enormous explosion.

Oh, wow.

[narrator] A passerby
narrowly escapes

as the mysterious explosion
rains debris onto the street.

This is clearly
an intense blast.

The whole room
is engulfed in flames.

[narrator] The restaurant
is completely empty.

But staff from
the shop next door flee

as the building burns.

This is like
a fireball from Hell.

It's insane.

What could have caused
that much destruction in
a matter of seconds?

[explosion]

[narrator] Historian
Tony McMahon

looks into the neighborhood
where the video was shot

and discovers that
even before it blew up

this venue was hot property.

This happened in the Jiading
district of Shanghai

where there's been
a lot of redevelopment.

[narrator] Shanghai
has grown from a city

of 13 million in the 1990s

to a city of over
25 million people today.

But rapid expansion
has come at a cost.

Two million people
have been evicted

as single storied buildings
are replaced by skyscrapers.

If your restaurant or house is
in a redevelopment area

you've got two choices.

One, you can take the money
they're offering and leave

or you can stay.

Which may anger
a lot of people.

[explosion]

This explosion was,
one, totally unexpected.

And, number two, took out
the entire restaurant.

So what we could be
looking at is some sort of
covert demolition.

[explosion]

[narrator] Not everyone
in China facing eviction
wants to move.

And some residents fight back.

These buildings that
resist the authorities

and property developers,

they're referred to
as nail houses.

Because they're like a nail
that won't be hammered down.

Some people will stay
for years in these
old apartment buildings.

No power,
no running water, nothing.

Basically, every method
is used

to convince the tenants
to get out.

[narrator] These bizarre
isolated dwellings

aren't just found in China.

The United States is
also home to such houses

whose owners have stood firm

and refused to back down to
powerful property developers.

You've got old houses
around which have actually

been built large
office buildings.

Perhaps like
the worst case example,

there's this guy
in Washington, D.C.

He refused to sell.

They even offered him
$2 million to get out.

He just wouldn't do it.

So now the little
two-story house

is surrounded by these
massive office buildings.

Sandwiched on either side.

[narrator] But as some
people have discovered,

staying put can be dangerous.

One old lady was
literally buried alive

in the path of an excavator
demolishing her own home.

And it really is
demolition roulette.

Sometimes you get the money,

and sometimes you come
to a sticky end.

So is this an attempt to
remove a stubborn tenant?

[narrator] But when
historian Craig Gottlieb

looks into the area
where the blast happened,

he finds that criminal
development enterprises

are not to blame for
the explosion in the footage.

You know, the more
you think about it,

bringing an organized
crime to force eviction,

that's really a last resort.

And right now,
around this restaurant,

there still exist other
buildings, other restaurants.

So, really, it's not
quite time to bring in
the heavy guns.

[narrator] When former NYPD
image analyst Coner McCourt

goes through the footage
frame by frame,

he notices a strange light

just before the explosion.

Right here,
dead in the center,

seems to be what could
possibly be the point
of ignition.

There's a yellow flash
in the cooking area.

And what seems to be
some kind of propane cylinder

that's possibly exploded.

[narrator] Fire is one of
the biggest hazards in
restaurant kitchens.

Propane is used
in some restaurants

as it's more than twice
as cheap as electricity

to heat up food.

But tanks in restaurants
are designed

to stop their contents
from exploding.

They use a pressure
release valve

that stops pressure building
inside the tank and blowing
it up.

[gas hissing]

In principle,
if the pressure release valve
is working properly

the tank won't explode.

[narrator] Matt Kutcher has
over 20 years' experience

as a top Hollywood
pyrotechnics expert.

Go!

[narrator]
And he immediately notices

that there's nothing wrong

with the propane tank
safety valve in the clip.

So, you could see here
in the footage, right?

That the canister's
still intact.

So the other possibility is

maybe it's been leaking
for quite sometime

and there's some kind of
ignition source. Some
kind of spark.

And then it just completely
blew this place up.

[narrator] He wants to see
if the blast in the footage

could have been caused
by the propane tank

in the kitchen leaking.

So it's one thing
to set up a gas leak,

but we're gonna
have to set up a gas leak

in an area that's
gonna be contained.

So we went ahead
and set up a tent.

And this tent is gonna hold
the actual liquid propane gas.

And then we're gonna
have an ignition source.

In this case, we're gonna
use a gas stove

to simulate the type of stove
they may have in a restaurant,
right?

Then when that
source hits the gas,

hopefully, it blows up.

[explosion]

[narrator] Coming up...

We're gonna start
letting it fill with gas.

[narrator] Matt Kutcher
fries a restaurant.

[Matt Kutcher] Here we go!

In three, two, one. Hit it.

-[narrator] And fear
in the forest...
-[dog barking]

-[man] Hey!
-Have workmen in the woods

stirred a legendary monster?

No, no, no, no! Oh, God.

[narrator] In Shanghai, China,

a noodle shop
mysteriously explodes.

Pyrotechnics expert
Matt Kutcher

wants to see if the explosion

was the result of a deadly
leak in a propane tank.

He has rigged an experiment

where he will ignite
leaking propane gas

inside a tent.

A contained area
representing the restaurant.

[explosion]

Guys, here we go.
I'm gonna open the valve,

we're gonna start
letting it fill with gas.

[gas hissing]

All right, here we go.
Let's get safe.

In three, two, one. Hit it.

[explosion]

Wow! That was really cool!

Man, that was great.
There's nothing left.

[explosion]

It looks amazing.

You could see that all the gas

was building up there
on the bottom, right?

And then all of a sudden
it just explodes.

It just goes.

It looks like
the video, right?

Big rolling fireball.

I'm pretty sure that was
a propane leak that caused
that explosion.

It must have been coming
from that tank in the video.

It's a lot of gas, man.

[explosion]

[narrator] Propane tanks
like the one in the video

are found in restaurant
kitchens all over the world,

including the United States.

And just because the cylinders
have a safety valve,

it doesn't mean
diners are safe

from a lethal propane blast.

If fires like that
start popping up,

I don't think I'll feel safe
in a restaurant again.

It really raises the question,

could this happen to any of
our favorite eating places?

[explosion]

[narrator] Now...

Northern Saskatchewan, Canada.

Near the hamlet of
Stony Rapids.

September 9th, 2015.

A man is walking
his dog in the woods.

-[dog barking]
-His pet senses
something is wrong.

[dog barking]

Then, he sees it himself

lurking between the trees.

What is this thing?

It looks massive.

-[dog barking]
-[narrator]
There's a giant figure

crouching close to the ground.

As though lying in wait.

There's no doubt
it could take you down.

[narrator] Moments later
the beast launches itself
at the dog.

[dog barking]

No, no, no, no! Oh, God.

[narrator] The dog's bark
turns from one of warning

to sheer terror.

-Its owner yells
and drops his camera.
-[dog yelping]

[man] Hey!

I don't blame the guy
for dropping the camera

'cause this looked like it
was going to kill his dog.

[narrator] The man
and his dog flee.

[man panting]

This is a really
terrifying clip.

If you were to see something
like this in the woods,

you definitely
better be running.

-[dog yelping]
-[man] Hey!

[narrator] Saskatchewan's
woods cover over

eighty-four million acres
of the province.

Over twice the size of Florida

and are home to
the Canadian timber wolf.

[howling]

But these wild creatures
hunt in packs

and generally stay far away
from human settlements.

Wolves are really species
of the wilderness

and they're generally
pretty afraid of people.

So it's very unusual
to see them come

this close to where
people live.

[narrator] Lyle Blackburn
finds local reports going
back centuries

of a huge canine creature
in these woods.

European settlers called
it the loup garou.

Legends describe a creature
with formidable fangs

and incredible strength.

It wasn't just folklore.

Newspapers were issuing
warnings to people

so they wouldn't be attacked.

It must have been
absolutely terrifying.

[growling]

[narrator] Some believe
the loup garou

truly was
a supernatural creature.

Perhaps an evil man

transformed into
a gigantic black wolf.

This is sort of like
the ultimate werewolf.

If there's anybody out there
who still does believe
in loup garous,

I think they'll probably
look at this footage

and think they've
just seen one.

[dog yelping]

[dog barking]

[narrator] Chad Orzel
examines the footage

and is reminded of
a ferocious
prehistoric creature

who is known to roam
the woods of southern Canada.

Packs of giant animals
called dire wolves

used to live in this
part of the country

and they looked
just like this.

[narrator] Dire wolves,
so named for their
aggressive nature,

hunted prey across
North America

during the Pleistocene Epoch

over 10,000 years ago.

Dire wolves were built like
modern grey wolves

but they were
about 25% bigger.

If any of them
were alive today

they'd probably be behaving
just like this creature.

-[dog yelping]
-[man] Hey!

[narrator] These terrifying
mega-mammals

could take down a Mastodon.

But current science suggests

they became extinct at
the end of the last ice age.

[puppies whining]

A project in Oregon has been
attempting to breed canines

that look just like
dire wolves since 1987.

These animals
aren't real dire wolves.

They lack the aggression
and ferocity of their
ancient ancestors.

But could others be attempting
to create the real thing

in the primordial forest
of Saskatchewan?

That's the kind of experiment
that could get out of hand.

[narrator] The revival of
extinct creatures is
no longer fantasy.

A team of scientists
in the U.S.

are working on bringing
back prehistoric species

by engineering
hybrid ancient DNA

and implanting it into
the egg of the animal's
modern descendent.

Scientists are looking at
bringing back the wooly
mammoth

using its closest living
relative, the Asian elephant.

[narrator]
Biologists have no idea

how controllable or aggressive
these creatures would be.

A study in 2021

found that so-called
dire wolf skeletons

shared very little DNA with
wolves, dogs or coyotes.

They were a totally
unique prehistoric beast.

With no known living relatives

it would be incredibly hard
to bring them back.

De-extinction science
is still in its infancy.

Even when it is being handled
by the top scientists.

It's highly unlikely that
a successful rebirth

would happen outside
of human knowledge.

So this must be
something else.

[narrator] Orzel discovers
disturbing reports

of modern wolves in the area

suddenly behaving
in unnatural ways.

Northern Saskatchewan is
a hotbed for wolf attacks.

There have been many
sightings of wolves
getting close to people

and sometimes even
going on the attack.

[narrator]
Northern Saskatchewan has had

three attacks on adult men
in just 12 years.

One of them fatal.

In the rest of Canada,

there hasn't been a lethal
wolf attack on humans
for decades.

They seem to have lost
their fear of humans.

Whatever is causing
this change in temperament
of the wolf

could be deadly.

-[narrator] Coming up...
-[dog barking]

Man exploits the forests,

wolves get angry.

So what's going on
in this region

that could be setting
these wolves off?

[narrator] And a meteorite
in a museum

seems to levitate
a glass case.

Why is it moving the way
that it's moving?

It's just... It has
a will of its own.

[narrator] In northern
Saskatchewan, Canada,

eerie footage shows
a man and his dog

-confronted by
an aggressive creature.
-[dog yelping]

Biologists think it's one of
North America's 60,000
wild wolves

displaying unusually
hostile behavior.

[snarls]

Their very large size
makes it extremely difficult

for a human to win
a fight against them.

But normally, humans
wouldn't have to worry

about getting attacked
by a timber wolf.

[narrator] Reports have been
growing in the region

of wolves losing their fear of
humans and going on the hunt.

In 2004,
a worker is heading home

when he is savagely
attacked by a wolf.

He suffers severe bites
to his back, arm and pelvis,

before being rescued
by colleagues.

Then in 2016,

a local security guard
discovers a crazed wolf

with its jaws around
the neck of a kitchen worker.

So what's going on
in this region

that could be setting
these wolves off?

[narrator] Researchers
studying wolf attacks

on Vancouver Island,
western Canada,

believe the problem is people.

Over a six year period,

they recorded 51
dangerous wolf encounters

including seven
dog fatalities.

And it's a trend seen
across Northern America.

[dog yelping]

That dog is lucky
to get out alive.

[narrator] Industries like
mining, logging and tourism

are pushing communities
deeper into the wilderness

bringing more humans
into contact with wolves.

And man's invasion of this
wilderness may only get worse.

Since the end
of the 20th century,

over ten million acres
of Saskatchewan's land

has been appropriated
for commercial use.

While more than quarter
of a million tourists

visit this area every year.

As wolves observe
humans up close,

they lose their fear of us

and see us instead as a feast.

It's certainly possible
that that's what we're
seeing in the video.

[narrator]
The message is clear.

Avoid close contact
with wild wolves.

If you started trying to run
from this thing, forget it.

You'd never make it.

You can never
outrun this thing.

[dog yelping]

[narrator]
Now, Chelyabinsk, Russia.

February 15th, 2013.

A meteor streaks
across the sky.

[Tony McMahon] And then
when it impacts,

it creates a sonic boom

and smashes windows in houses,

injures 1,600 people.

The rock was pulled
from the local lake

and put on display
in a museum.

[narrator] The 1,100 pound
meteor fragment

becomes the star attraction

at Chelyabinsk museum
of South Ural History.

Six years later,

a security camera
monitors the display.

The meteorite is protected
beneath a glass pyramid
casing

that's on four steel
motorized rods

which can be raised or lowered
by museum security staff.

It looks like any old day
at the local science museum.

Nothing really
special's going on.

You have a few visitors.

They're reading some
of the text panels.

[narrator] But then...

Wow!

It looks like
the glass case is floating.

[narrator]
Footage sped up 16 times

shows the security dome
weighing over 250 pounds

slowly rising on
its metal rods

five inches into the air

seemingly without
any human intervention.

any human intervention.

It's really inexplicable.

You've got this meteor
under a glass case,

and then the case just seems
to lift of its own volition.

[narrator] It's occurring so
slowly, the visitors don't
even notice it.

But the footage shows
it's happening

and experts are baffled.

Why is it moving the way
that it's moving?

It just has a will of its own.

[narrator] The case is
designed so staff can
retrieve the rock

but no one was attempting
to access it when the footage
was shot.

You see the staff, they're
looking and trying to decide
what to do.

So what's going on with this
strange rock from outer space?

[narrator] People in ancient
times believe meteors possess
strange and magical powers.

These massive objects light up
the sky with awesome power,

so it's no surprise that they
were worshipped in
ancient Egypt,

in ancient Rome even.

At Islam's holy
shrine in Mecca

some believe there's a
meteorite which forms the
centerpiece of devotion

and it's believed to date back
to Adam and Eve and it was

placed there by the
prophet Muhammad.

[narrator] Modern day
scientists have found that
some meteorites do have powers

that would have startled
the ancients.

They can have magnetic fields

especially when they contain
a lot of iron or nickel.

But the magnetic power of
even the biggest meteorite

is usually only strong enough
to move the needle
of a compass.

Not enough to lift a glass
case like the one in the clip.

So what is it about this
exhibit that's exerting
that power?

[narrator] Coming up,
is something alive inside
this meteor?

It could possibly, completely
suffocate all of living life,

killing out everything we know
on this planet.

[narrator] And experts are
baffled by a mysterious
big nose beach blob.

It's body is translucent

and you can almost
see something.

Maybe its organs moving
around inside?

[narrator] In Chelyabinsk
Russia,

a museum security case
protecting an 1,100
pound meteorite

mysteriously opens.

Engineer Nick Householder
wonders if the
Chelyabinsk's meteor

could contain a
hidden visitor.

NASA and science fiction
writers have long considered

the possibility of life
hitching a ride inside
of a meteorite.

Because you have effectively
a ready-built space craft

with the shell protecting
you from the forces of space

while providing you
sustenance inside.

[narrator] The Chelyabinsk's
meteorite fragment has been

extensively studied
by scientists

and no space craft has been
found inside.

But astrophysicist
Athena Brensberger

reckons they might have missed
an almost impossible to spot
type of life form.

[Athena] A possible
alien life form could exist
within a meteor.

It may live in something
known as a microscopic
shadow biosphere

which would look so different
than anything that we've known
here on earth

that we might not even
think that it'll be
biological in origin.

[narrator] Scientists believe
these theoretical shadow
organisms

utilize radically
different chemistry

undetectable by regular tests.

Life on earth is carbon-based,

but in 2016, a team of
Caltech scientists

engineer a bacterial enzyme

that can make organic
molecules out of silicon.

A silicon-based life form
might look more like a rock

than anything we recognize
as a creature

but would nevertheless still
be alive.

Perhaps this meteorite
has some type of life

that itself is what's
effecting the moving
of the case.

Maybe that's why the museum
staff are so scared
that it's opening.

That case could be
there to protect us.

[narrator] A silicon-based
life form would need some
kind of food for fuel.

It could hunt out energy
sources from
chemicals on our planet

then digest, process and
excrete them in a way
that could

catastrophically alter
the environment.

If something like this
were to reach earth,

it could possibly, completely
suffocate all of living life

killing out everything we know
on this planet.

[narrator] But Tony McMahon
thinks the mysterious movement
of the glass

could be evidence of an
audacious attempted theft.

Pound for pound, these
meteorites are worth
more than gold.

So, you have to wonder

how much the meteorite
in the museum that
we saw on the footage

would go for,
arguably millions.

[narrator] Former FBI agent
Rhonda Glover looks at the

mechanism that lifts
the glass case

and sees a clue.

The security guard comes at
and he has the remote

and then the case
goes back down.

Something caused
the case to go up.

So the question would be
if the staff have the remote

how could somebody else
open the case?

[narrator] Aerospace engineer
Nick Householder thinks the

wireless remote
control mechanism

is a weak point in the
meteor museum's
security system.

I wanna see if it's possible
to steal a signal and use it
for nefarious purposes.

But instead of a
display case...

[beeps and clicking]

I'm gonna see
if I can steal this car.

[narrator] Car keys use the
same principle as most
remote control devices.

In modern contactless car keys
emit a constant signal

so the owner can
unlock their car

just by being in
close proximity.

Modern car keys are
effectively a tiny radio

they broadcast signals
directly to your car

to open your car doors,
sometimes to start the engine.

If you're capable of capturing
that signal and then
repeating it,

you can effectively hack
into a car.

[narrator] Householder has
an electronic device

that will attempt to steal
the car key signal.

For safety, the design must
remain secret.

Let's see if we can use this
to open the car which might
explain what we're seeing

in the case in video.

[narrator] Next, Householder
move closer to the key fob

to try and steal the signal.

Now that we're a little closer
let's see if we can actually
capture the signal.

When I turn it on, it begins
the seeking process.

-[beeps]
-There, we got it,
it captured the signal.

Let's see if
we can open the car.

Now that we've
stolen the signal,
let's see if we can open it.

Now just to prove it,
this is still locked.

When I send out the signal
I've stolen...

[unlocks]

The doors unlock.

I'd be willing to bet the
technology like this
could be the explanation

for what we're seeing
in the video.

[narrator] McMahon
finds Chelyabinsk

has a very active
criminal gang.

An offshoot of a big
crime enterprise
run across the Urals.

They use similar devices to
hack remote control keys

and steal luxury cars.

Could we be seeing Russian
gangs using the same remote
control technology

that they employ
to get their hands
on American luxury cars

in order to steal that very
valuable meteorite?

[narrator] And why stop
at space rocks?

There are over 50,000 museums
in the world,

crammed with dinosaurs,
skeletons, jewelry and other
ancient artifacts

with a total insurance value
of 180 billion dollars.

If they Russian mafia are
capable of deploying

high tech criminal techniques
in our museums and
art galleries,

they could make
a lot of money.

[man] We're talking about
the Russian Federation

where there are organized
gangs that are out there
to turn a profit.

What would stop something
like this from happening
somewhere else?

[narrator] Now, Koh Lanta
Beach, Thailand.

March 31st, 2018,

a tourist is walking
along the beach

when he comes across
a mysterious blob.

Gadzooks!

That is gross.

It's brown with a greasy sheen

and unlike normal blob-like
sea creatures,

it appears to have a snout.

It's writhing and moving
and palpitating.

Not a pretty sight.

[narrator] And there seems
to be some kind of
unnatural movement

going on inside the blob.

It's body is translucent and
you can almost see something,

maybe its organs
moving around inside.

[narrator] The tourist begins
to touch it then quickly
changes his mind.

Oh, I would not touch that.

I wouldn't touch that.

This thing is unlike anything
I've ever seen before.

[narrator] Coming up,
is this blob a man-made
monstrosity?

There's every possibility that
our household waste
is creating

alien-like mutated creatures
from the depths of the ocean.

[narrator] And in a
Spanish town

a bizarre streak of fire
charges across the grass.

Is this an artificial fire
or a weird natural phenomenon?

[narrator] In Koh Lanta,
Thailand a weird blob

appears to have a snout
and something seems to be
writhing and moving inside.

Marine biologist Eric Hovland
wonders if the creature
could have mutated

due to some
industrial accident.

Mutations can be caused by
a whole host of different
causes.

There's every possibility
that this creature
could be affected

by local pollution as well.

[narrator] Thailand's coastal
provinces generate almost
three million tons

of uncollected garbage
every year.

Waste from tourism,
agriculture and industry

blights this once
idyllic destination.

Thailand is known for its
beautiful beaches and
pristine waters

but pollution is having an
environmental impact
of unmeasured proportion.

[narrator] It's surrounding
seas contain waste

that ravages
all living creatures.

In 2017, fishermen sail into
a mass of plastic trash

floating in
the Gulf of Thailand.
It weighs over 90 tons.

The media dubs it
Garbage Island.

The chemicals that comprise
the plastics can be toxic,

leading to cancer
and mutations.

Marine creatures are
particularly susceptible
to mutation

because they're simply
bathed in pollution

and have no means of escaping
what they eat, breathe
and swim in.

[narrator] The organism's
snout could be some sort of
breathing tube,

a bizarre feature for
a creature like a blob

designed to live
on the ocean floor.

There's every possibility
our household waste
is creating

alien-like mutated creatures
from the depths of the oceans.

[narrator] Biologist
Raven Baxter tries to pinpoint
the creature's species.

The long shape is typical
of a sea cucumber.

But this one is difficult
to identify.

[narrator] It's unlike
any ordinary sea cucumber

in which movement
is normally limited.

One of the challenges in
identifying this sea
cucumber is

sea cucumbers are very
simple organisms.

However, we see
a lot of motion and writhing

inside this particular
sea cucumber.

This pulsating suggests
the presence of a second
creature inside.

[narrator] Baxter believes the
this second organism could be

one of the nastiest fish
in the ocean.

These fish are disgusting.

They burrow into
the sea cucumber's anus

and live in there
like it's a cave.

[Steve] During the day,
they use it as a hidey-hole,

and at night they
come out to hunt.

It's not the kind of living
arrangement I would
personally go for.

[narrator] These fish are
called pearl fish

and sea cucumbers with guests
like these living inside them

can suffer a hideous fate.

In some cases the pearl fish
will eat the sea cucumber's
gonads.

[narrator] On other occasions
pearl fish have been known to

burrow so deep inside
sea cucumber's

that they penetrate
their vital organs.

What looks like the snout
may actually be the fishes
head poking out.

[narrator] But if this is a
pearl fish setting up camp
inside a sea cucumber

its behavior is very strange.

When the man who shot the
footage tries to put the
creature back in the sea,

it pushes its snout-like bulge
out of the water

as thought the ocean
isn't where it wants to be.

What does the sea cucumber
want to remain on land?

[narrator] The next day,
the mysterious pulsating
blob is gone

and so is any chance of
figuring out what it could
really be.

Mutant creature,
or rare aquatic species,

it certainly qualifies as
one strange alien blob.

[narrator] Now,
Calahorra, Spain...

May, 2020,

a man films as a relentless
flaming wave

sweeps through
a public park.

Wow, what is that?

This persistent line of fire

it just marching across the
park unhindered.

[man] It's really ominous,
it's almost like nothing is
gonna stop this

slow creeping blaze that just
snakes as far as the eye
can see.

[narrator] And the bizarre
blaze doesn't seem to burn

like any ordinary fire.

The white stuff
almost looks like snow.

So we've got fire and ice
together. It's unreal.

[narrator] But it can't
be snow as the temperature
is 68 degrees.

And nothing else about
this blaze seems to make
sense either.

The trees aren't getting
burned. And the wind is moving
consistently against the fire.

[narrator] And most bizarre
of all, as the weird
white stuff burns,

it leaves
pristine grass behind.

It's like a biblical fire
cleansing the land.

Fires don't just crawl across
a public park like that.

Is this an artificial fire,
or a weird natural phenomenon?

[narrator] Coming up...

Is a killer substance
taking over our parks?

It's amazing that something
so harmless could be
so lethal.

[narrator]
In Calahorra, Spain...

A man films
a miraculous-looking
strip of fire

spread across a local park,

leaving pristine green grass
in its wake.

Engineer Rachel De Barros
discovers local farmers use
strips of fire to clear fields

because it's fast and cheap.

But these flames come
with severe consequences.

The effects of stubble burning
can be devastating,

because it fills the air
with fine, particulate matter.

In essence, you're dumping
a ton of pollutants into
the nearby city.

So people start to suffer
all kinds of health concerns.

[narrator] When farmers
burn stubble,

fine particles,
over a hundred times thinner
than a human hair,

are released
into the atmosphere.

They are the most dangerous
form of air pollution,

because when breathed in,

they penetrate
deep into the lungs,

increasing the risk
of mutations and cancer.

When they
enter the bloodstream,

the smoke fumes can cause
heart disease and strokes.

And research
by the European
Environment Agency

has connected almost
28,000 deaths in Spain
to particulate pollution.

In Europe, this practice
is all but banned,

and only allowed
in special circumstances.

But it still happens.
Sometimes legally, and
other times not.

[narrator] In September 2019,

a man is arrested for
unauthorized stubble burning

near a local park
in Gran Canaria.

These fires can't be
controlled, only contained.

So it's not hard to imagine it
spreading beyond the park,
into the town.

[narrator] But stubble burning
doesn't explain

what the mysterious
white substance is.

And why the flames
leave pristine grass behind.

Biologist Kiki Sanford
studies the trees
in the footage

and suspects they play
a crucial part in this
bizarre blaze.

Looking at the shape
of the trees

and the color of the bark
and the leaves on the trees,

I think these are poplars.

[narrator] Poplar trees,
also known as cottonwoods,

grow at a rapid rate
of approximately
six feet a year,

and are a popular source
of biofuel.

These trees are so useful
in providing green energy,

that the timber industry

has doubled the area
of poplar plantations
in the last 15 years.

Now covering 23 million acres
around the world.

But these beneficial trees
have a hidden danger.

Every spring, these trees
produce seeds that are covered
in white cotton-like hairs.

When there are lots of these
poplar trees in one area,

the seeds can make it
almost look like snow.

But what's really shocking is
just how flammable these
seeds really are.

[narrator] The fine fluff
burns quickly.

Just one spark,
and fire rapidly spreads
across the ground.

Just like the blaze
in the footage.

Wildfires are a major problem
in the modern world.

And in some cases, these seeds
are exacerbating the problem.

[narrator] In June 2019,
firefighters battle
a devastating wildfire

that rages across a forest
in Winnipeg, Canada.

They discover that the fire
could have been spread

by large amounts
of this poplar fluff.

They had to collect the fluff
to minimize the damage.

[narrator] And environmental
scientists have found
a worrying trend.

The conditions
that are perfect for wildfires

also drive an increase
in poplar seed production.

Droughts from previous years
causes these trees to panic

and produce more seeds,
just in case.

It's like they're trying
to prepare the next generation
of trees in case they die.

Droughts are painful
at the best of times.

But introducing a highly
flammable substance is
adding insult to injury.

[narrator] Poplar accounts
for 50% of all timber cut
in some parts of Spain.

And fires in the country
are skyrocketing in numbers
and intensity.

In 2019,

a fire roars
through northern Spain,

on an unprecedented scale,
not seen in the country
for 20 years.

The Regional Interior Minister
reported that a fire would
burn out 50,000 acres.

People were evacuated
from their homes,
roads were closed,

and over 500 firefighters
were sent in to battle
the blaze.

Hundreds of sheep die
in the smoke and the flames.

It was just insane.

[narrator] The mayor
of Calahorra

suspects the freak fire
in the footage was started
on purpose.

She believes that it was
caused by careless
human activity.

Or someone
deliberately lighting it
just to see the effect.

[narrator] Luckily, on this
occasion, the grass beneath
was wet and didn't burn.

Had it been dry,
this fire could've destroyed
the entire city.

The risk is if the fire
doesn't move, but stays
confined in one place,

it can light trees and houses
and burn in an uncontrolled
devastating fashion.

[narrator] Spain, where
summer temperatures soar to
over 100 degrees Fahrenheit,

is at risk of drowning
in a sea of flammable fluff.

This fluff on the ground
is like gasoline in an
already vulnerable area.

This is not a good spot
for a picnic.

Unless you want
your sandwich flambéed.