Case file · High strangeness
Hatfield the rainmaker and the 1916 flood
San Diego hired 'rainmaker' Charles Hatfield in December 1915 to fill Morena Reservoir. His towers released secret chemicals; in January 1916 floods broke the Lower Otay Dam and killed about 20 people.
1916 CE · 32.68, -116.55 · status: disputed
The account
The city refused to pay, saying the rain was an act of God; lawsuits dragged on for years. Hatfield said he had done exactly what was asked.
The sceptical view
Meteorologists attribute the floods to a series of strong Pacific storms; no chemical method of making that much rain is known.