Area 51 Raid: First Footage and Photos Arrive Online

Do you remember, just a couple of months ago, when someone got bored and started a Facebook event about raiding Area 51 to free whatever alien life might be locked inside? The entire thing was a joke and most everyone who heard of the social media effort treated it as such. Well it clearly wasn't a joke for everyone, as the weekend of the raid event has arrived and some crowds have actually gathered around Area 51 in Nevada. True story, it's really happening.

Despite several warnings from local and national government, people are still showing up to Area 51 with props, signs, and whatever Naruto running skill they can muster. There are road blocks in place, guards patrolling the walls of the facility, yet people are still gathering to do....something?

It's unclear if the raid will actually take place or if folks will simply chant in a crowd for Instagram. Either way, there is a collection of alien lovers at Area 51 and the first photos and video from the event are now surfacing online.

Think back to the beginning of the Will Smith-starring Independence Day. Remember that crowd that gathered on the roof of a tall building to welcome the aliens to earth with strange signs and cheers? Area 51 sort of looks like that right now.