Is Unknown Creature in the North Carolina Sewer Real?

A YouTube video surfaced yesterday that claimed to show unknown creatures in a North Carolina sewer. The video was shot by sewer inspectors on April 27th near Raleigh. It appears to show at least two blob-like creatures moving in cracks in the pipe. The unknown creatures appear to undulate and then contract towards the middle. There is no discernible head or appendages visible.

The appearance of the video of the unknown creatures has set the internet on fire, from North Carolina to China. Several UFO website claim that the origin of the unknown creatures is alien and that the video is proof that we are already being visited by life forms from other worlds. Some sites are suggesting that we all need to prepare for the coming invasion.

Another camp believes that the photos are doctored and that the unknown creatures in the North Carolina sewer are actually a hoax. Comparisons to 1950's B movies have been made as the unknown creatures have similar blob-like features to Hollywood monsters.

But there is a third group of people who are very interested in the video- sewer inspectors. Experienced sewer inspectors have seen it all down in the tunnels under cities. That makes it interesting to get their take on the unknown creatures in the North Carolina sewer. One of the most popular theories is that it really isn't one creature at all but hundreds. A contributor to InspectionNews.com, Dr. Timothy S. Wood, an officer of the International Bryozoology Association and a professor at Wright State University in Ohio, believes that the blob is actually a colony of annelid worms, specifically Tubifex worms.

Tubifex worms often live in sediment in streams and ponds, but the cracks in the pipe may be providing the soil they need to survive. Wood says that the "contractions" seen in the video are likely the result of one worm contracting and then causing all of the surrounding worms to respond, giving the appearance of a single creature. Tubifex worms would not harm the sewer system and are generally benign. They would not have caused the cracks in the pipe, but would have simply taken advantage of them.

While it is more entertaining to believe that a new, and perhaps alien, species has been found below the streets of North Carolina, this unusual find may well turn out to be only some worms.

Sources:

http://www.inspectionnews.net/home_inspection/plumbing-system-home-inspection-commercial-inspection/14220-unknown-lifeform-north-carolina-sewer.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcKpx2DxGwY
http://paranormal.about.com/b/2009/06/30/video-unknown-lifeform-in-north-carolina-sewer.htm