On a dusky June evening on the New River near Sparta in Alleghany County, North Carolina, a man and his 12‐year‐old son were startled by a cacophony of terrifying screams—described as a blend of wild animal roars and the sound of “20 people dying”—prompting BFRO Investigator Rick Reles to document the incident (report #76970, Class B audio evidence) as of 2024-12-16T11:00:51-06:00.