A meteorite has landed in the Sredna Gora mountain near the town of Sopot, in Central Bulgaria.

Locals reported seeing bright lights just before 19:00 EET (17:00 GMT) followed by rumbles and smoke, according to Novinite's Bulgarian-language website.

Some witnesses claim the fireball looked "the size of a washing machine" while making its way downwards.

But Sopot Mayor Veselin Lichev told private national channel TV7 that "it was a small piece of a rock... It fell somewhere in Sredna Gora and we will not be able to find it."

Lichev ruled out that it could set anything ablaze, since there have been no reports of a fire in the past 15 hours.

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