Late last month, 20-year-old Matty Roberts made a Facebook group asking its attendees to converge in the Southern Nevada desert to raid the highly classified U.S. Air Force Base known as Area 51. Many rumors has surrounded the secretive facility, which is within bounds of the Nevada Test and Training Range, specifically regarding U.F.O.s and aliens. Curiosity and conspiracy theories about the base have been ongoing since the 1950s, however, Robert’s own curiosity in the site led him to create what he now says is a “satirical” event called “Storm Area 51, They Can’t Stop All of Us.”
It isn’t quite clear what specific precautions or drastic measures Area 51 will take to prevent this civilian attack from happening, but a spokesperson told the The Times that “any attempt to illegally access military installations or military training areas is dangerous.” This makes sense, considering that Area 51 is a secret military base that’s part of the Nellis Air Force Base in southern Nevada, which is designed to test and train combat aircraft…meaning that the consequences for trespassing could literally be deadly.
Although it’s highly unlikely that all 1.1 million people are going to show up to Amargosa Valley, there are some people who actually might be taking this seriously. Who knew! According to the New York Times, Little A’Le’Inn—a hotel in a nearby Nevada town—has experienced a serious uptick in callers requesting rooms on the Area 51 invasion date. “Oh, it’s insane,” Connie West, a co-owner of the inn, told The Times. “My poor bartender today walked past me and said, ‘I hate to tell you, but every phone call I’ve had is about September 20.’ They’re pretty serious. They’re coming. People are coming.”