CHULA VISTA, Calif. (KGTV) -- Residents in Otay Ranch finally have answers after a loud banging noise could be heard throughout the night Friday.
Residents in the area reported the loud noise to police they described as sounding like gunshots or loud fireworks.
As it turns out, the sounds were air cannons being shot off at a nearby landfill on the 1700 block of Maxwell Road.
Republic Services Otay Landfill told 10News they fire off the cannons during the day to keep the birds away.
At night, the cannons are shut off and the landfill covered to keep the birds from carrying trash to other parts of the city.
Friday night, however, the company says someone forgot to shut off the cannon, leaving it running throughout the night.
The landfill says the practice, called bird abatement, is a common, but what happened Friday was simple human error.
