Russian media are calling last week’s sudden change of Siberia’s Molchanka River into a blood-red estuary a “biblical bombshell,” referencing the first of the Bible’s ten plagues visited on the Egytians in the book of Exodus.
There, the Nile River and other water sources turned to blood.
No one is calling the Molchanka transformation blood, but scientists are troubled enough about the event to be searching for its cause, assumed to be a natural one. Experts in the regional department of the Federal Service for Supervision of Natural Resources (Rosprirodnadzor), the Russian agency responsible for environmental concerns, are investigating the cause of the shocking crimson color, reported Breaking Israel News. Samples sent to the Center for Epidemiology are being tested for presence of toxic compounds.
Some residents of the city of Tyumen are blaming the change on greenhouse wastes. Officials have not released results of testing.
“We have never dealt with this before, so we are waiting for the results of tests,” said a Rosprirodnadzor spokesman.
While a waterway suddenly turning red can be locally shocking, the fact is the phenomenon is not uncommon. WND reported in 2013 a similar, sudden change in the canals of Nootdorp, South Holland, in the Netherlands.
“It looks like red wine,” remarked Nootdorp resident Mark Ruder to the Netherlands’ Telstar Online.
“It is probably an algae,” Ruder speculated, “but in our region that just does not happen.”
As with Russian media, others saw the “blood-red, biblical color” as suggestive of the plagues of Egypt or the prophecies of the book of Revelation.
In the prophetic book of Revelation, the Scriptures foretell a time when oceans and rivers will flow with blood again.
Revelation 8:8 states, “And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea; and the third part of the sea became blood.”
And in Rev. 16:3-4, the Bible states, “And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea. And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.”
It was that hint of future biblical events, rather than the echo of ancient ones, that Texas Pastor Paul Begley pointed to when the “water-into-blood” phenomenon was seen at a Texas lake in 2011.
“I’m not saying that this Texas lake is these Scriptures in Revelation,” he said, “but what I am saying is the Bible prophecies are slowly fulfilling themselves in the midst of an end time revelation – that we need to be right, we need to be saved, we need to be born again and ready to meet the coming King.”
Officials in all the events rejected any kind of supernatural explanation, declaring the color change likely being due to the sudden explosion of certain natural bacteria.
Last February, South Carolina wildlife officials reported several sightings of orange alligators. One of the carrot-colored reptiles was dubbed “Trumpigator” by locals. Similar Cheeto-colored gator sightings were made in Florida in 2011. Speculation as to the reason for the change included bacteria, algae, rust, sediment, iron oxide and “evolution in action,” but no biblical allusions.
