Man woke up and became a millionaire after a meteor crashed through his roof
This bloke woke up with quite a bang when a meteor crashed through his roof - and made him an instant millionaire.
Josua Hutagalung got the fright of his life when the space rock crash landed into his home in Kolang, Indonesia.
The dad-of-three was working outside when the meteor smashed through his tin-roofed veranda next to his living room.
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It managed to bury itself 15cm deep in the soil after pummelling down to Earth with an almighty thud.
But it turned out to be an extraordinary gift from above, as it boasted a price tag of £1.4million ($1.7million).
Definitely worth the dent in the roof.
The lump of debris from outer space was around 4.5 billion years old and weighed 2.1kg.
It was classified as CM1/2 carbonaceous Chondrite, which is an extremely rare meteor.
The news that the rock was worth around £1.4million - or £645 per gram - certainly cushioned the blow for Josua.
He was reportedly given the equivalent to 30 years’ salary for the football-sized meteor by a specialist collector.
The coffin maker explained it was still warm and partially broken when he dug the space rock out of the ground in August 2020.
Josua said at the time: "I brought it into the house. The sound was so loud that parts of the house were shaking too.
"And after I searched, I saw that the tin roof of the house had broken.
"I strongly suspect that this rock is indeed an object from the sky that many people call a meteorite.
"Because it is impossible someone deliberately threw it or dropped it from above."
They would be a very generous vandal if that was the case. Talk about a windfall!
Kind-hearted Josua said he wanted to use some of his newfound wealth to build a church in his community.
But he also believes the meteor could have been a sign from the skies that one of his dreams may come true.
"I have also always wanted a daughter, and I hope this is a sign that I will be lucky enough now to have one," he told The Sun.
The overnight millionaire became a local celebrity after news spread about the meteor crash and locals flocked to his home to see the rare rock.
Three other fragments of the meteor - officially named as Kolang - were also later found nearby.
The meteorite was shipped to the US after being snapped up by a doctor and meteorite collector from Indianapolis.
American meteorite expert Jared Collins, who bought part of the rock, said: "My phone lit up with crazy offers for me to jump on a plane and buy the meteorite.
"It was in the middle of the Covid crisis and frankly it was a toss-up between buying the rock for myself or working with scientists and collectors in the US.
"I carried as much money as I could muster and went to find Josua, who turned out to be a canny negotiator."
Kudos to Josua.
Topics: Space, Money, Weird, Science, World News
Olivia Burke