The Most Bizarre Unsolved Mysteries Of World War II

The early morning hours of Feb. 25, 1942, were, at least for the people of Los Angeles, some of the most tense of the war. That's when, according to History, military personnel and civilians alike were alerted of a possible airstrike incoming over the city. The night was lit up with search lights sweeping across the sky, while people sat in their blacked-out homes and wondered if Japanese forces had been emboldened by their attack on Pearl Harbor months earlier.

Their fears were surely confirmed when anti-aircraft guns began going off at around 3 a.m. in Santa Monica and, soon enough, the rest of the region. Troops were ordered to fire where some had seen an object floating through the sky. Yet, when the smoke cleared, nothing was to be seen.

According to the The Los Angeles Times, five people died as a result of the "Battle of Los Angeles" — three from a car accident and two from heart attacks. Some buildings were damaged by artillery shells that hadn't detonated in air.

So, what happened? The secretary of the Navy basically chalked it up to nerves, calling the whole thing a false alarm based on bad radar readings. Some witnesses swore they saw enemy airplanes soaring through the sky or may have seen a weather balloon, as History reports. A small number have even claimed that it was all flying saucers, though no one has produced strong evidence one way or another.

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