What is Storm Area 51?

Storm Area 51 was a satirical Facebook event created on June 27, 2019, titled "Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us," which jokingly proposed that millions of people charge the classified Nevada Air Force facility to find alien life[1].

Where did Storm Area 51 come from?

The event was created by Matty Roberts, a 20-year-old Bakersfield College student, after he watched an episode of *The Joe Rogan Experience* featuring Area 51 conspiracy theorist Bob Lazar[1].

What does Storm Area 51 mean?

The meme plays on the long-running conspiracy theory that Area 51 hides evidence of extraterrestrial life, combined with the absurd premise that a large enough mob of civilians could overwhelm military security[4].

How do you use Storm Area 51?

Common formats include creating memes about tactical plans to breach the base, imagining life with a rescued alien friend, or depicting the Naruto run toward the facility. The template is often adapted for other "storm" scenarios[12].

Is Storm Area 51 still popular?

While the original meme peaked in the summer of 2019, it experienced renewed interest with the July 2025 Netflix documentary *Trainwreck: Storm Area 51* and is well-remembered as a defining internet moment of its era[3].

Who created Storm Area 51?

Matty Roberts, who ran the Facebook page "Shitposting cause I'm in shambles," created the event on June 27, 2019. The event also listed SmyleeKun, a Twitch streamer, and an event planning account as co-hosts[1][4].

Did anyone actually storm Area 51?

About 150 people showed up at the gates on September 20, 2019, but nobody successfully entered the base. One woman was detained at the gate, and Laura Prater, 65, was arrested after ducking under the barrier and walking toward the facility[6][7].

What is the Naruto run?

The Naruto run is a running style from the anime *Naruto* where characters sprint with their torso leaned forward and arms stretched behind them. The Storm Area 51 event description claimed this technique could make runners "faster than their bullets"[4].

How many people signed up for Storm Area 51?

Over 2 million Facebook users marked themselves as "going" and another 1.5 million clicked "interested" by late August 2019[5].

How much did Storm Area 51 cost the military?

According to the Netflix documentary *Trainwreck*, the U.S. military spent an estimated $11 million preparing for the event, which Colonel Cavan Craddock defended as necessary given the potential for a mass casualty event[3].

Alienstock was a music festival originally planned by Roberts and Rachel, Nevada innkeeper Connie West to coincide with the Storm Area 51 date. Roberts later pulled out over logistical disputes, and West held her own version while Roberts hosted a separate event in Las Vegas[1][3].

Did the FBI visit Matty Roberts?

Yes. FBI agents visited Roberts at his home to determine whether he was actually planning a violent assault on the military base. He explained it was a joke, but claimed they told him he'd be responsible if anyone tried to breach the facility[3].

What happened to Matty Roberts after Storm Area 51?

Roberts made approximately $1,700 from selling T-shirts at the Las Vegas Area 51 Celebration event. He returned to his job at a vape kiosk in Bakersfield the following week[3].

What spinoff events did Storm Area 51 inspire?

Notable copycats included Storm the Bermuda Triangle, Storm Loch Ness, Storm the Woodchip Pile in Tasmania, and Storm BlizzCon 2019[5][7][14].

Was there a documentary about Storm Area 51?

Netflix released *Trainwreck: Storm Area 51*, a two-part documentary, on July 29, 2025, featuring interviews with Roberts, military officials, and local law enforcement about how the joke spiraled into a real security concern[3].

Storm Area 51

2019Facebook event / participatory memeclassic

Also known as: Storm Area 51 They Can't Stop All of Us · Area 51 Raid

Storm Area 51 is a June 2019 satirical Facebook event by Matty Roberts titled "They Can't Stop All of Us," rallying millions to Naruto-run into Area 51 searching for aliens.

Storm Area 51 was a satirical Facebook event created on June 27, 2019, by Matty Roberts, a 20-year-old college student from Bakersfield, California. Titled "Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us," the event called for millions of people to charge the classified Air Force facility in the Nevada desert using the anime-inspired "Naruto run" to dodge bullets and "see them aliens." What started as a late-night shitpost attracted over 2 million RSVPs, prompted an official military response, spawned real-world festivals, and became one of the defining internet moments of 20191 2.

TL;DR

Storm Area 51 was a satirical Facebook event created on June 27, 2019, by Matty Roberts, a 20-year-old college student from Bakersfield, California.

Overview

Storm Area 51 is a meme born from a Facebook event that proposed a mass civilian raid on Area 51, the classified U.S. Air Force facility in Nevada long associated with UFO conspiracy theories. The premise was simple and absurd: if enough people showed up at once, the military couldn't stop them all. The event's description suggested attendees use the "Naruto run," a distinctive running style from the anime series *Naruto* where characters sprint with their arms stretched behind them, to outrun bullets4. The meme generated thousands of image macros, video edits, and shitposts imagining what people would find inside the base, how they'd befriend their rescued aliens, and the various tactical approaches to breaching government security12.

On the evening of June 27, 2019, Matty Roberts was scrolling Facebook after watching an episode of *The Joe Rogan Experience* featuring Bob Lazar, a self-proclaimed Area 51 whistleblower who claimed to have reverse-engineered alien spacecraft at the base1. Roberts, a Bakersfield College student who worked at a vape kiosk in the Valley Plaza Mall, ran a small Facebook shitposting page called "Shitposting cause I'm in shambles"3. That night, he created a Facebook event rather than a typical image post, setting it for September 20, 2019, from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m. PDT at Amargosa Valley near the base6.

The event description read: "We will all meet up at the Area 51 Alien Center tourist attraction and coordinate our entry. If we Naruto run, we can move faster than their bullets. Lets see them aliens"4. Roberts later described the idea as "the ultimate shitpost," expecting it to get a few laughs from his page's roughly 40 followers3. For the first three days, it picked up only about 40 responses6. Then it exploded.

Origin & Background

Platform

Facebook

Key People

Matty Roberts, SmyleeKun

Date

2019

Year

2019

On the evening of June 27, 2019, Matty Roberts was scrolling Facebook after watching an episode of *The Joe Rogan Experience* featuring Bob Lazar, a self-proclaimed Area 51 whistleblower who claimed to have reverse-engineered alien spacecraft at the base. Roberts, a Bakersfield College student who worked at a vape kiosk in the Valley Plaza Mall, ran a small Facebook shitposting page called "Shitposting cause I'm in shambles". That night, he created a Facebook event rather than a typical image post, setting it for September 20, 2019, from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m. PDT at Amargosa Valley near the base.

The event description read: "We will all meet up at the Area 51 Alien Center tourist attraction and coordinate our entry. If we Naruto run, we can move faster than their bullets. Lets see them aliens". Roberts later described the idea as "the ultimate shitpost," expecting it to get a few laughs from his page's roughly 40 followers. For the first three days, it picked up only about 40 responses. Then it exploded.

How It Spread

By July 8, over 120,000 people had RSVPed. Two days later, the number hit 222,891. By July 22, it doubled again past 400,000. The pace didn't slow. Within weeks, over 1.5 million users clicked "going," with another 1.4 million marking "interested". The event eventually peaked at more than 2 million "going" and 1.5 million "interested" signatures by late August 2019.

The meme spilled off Facebook almost immediately, spreading across TikTok, Reddit, Instagram, and Twitter. Users posted tactical maps for breaching the facility, memes about adopting aliens as pets, and jokes about what the government was really hiding. A pinned comment on the event page laid out an elaborate (and clearly satirical) battle plan involving "Kyles" fueled by Monster Energy drinks and psilocybin serving as the front line.

On July 10, Air Force spokeswoman Laura McAndrews told *The Washington Post*: "We would discourage anyone from trying to come into the area where we train American armed forces". The FBI stated they would monitor the situation. These responses only fueled the meme further.

Rapper Lil Nas X dropped an animated music video on July 16 for the Young Thug and Mason Ramsey remix of "Old Town Road," depicting a Naruto-running Keanu Reeves raiding Area 51. The video hit YouTube's trending chart almost immediately. Brands piled on too, with Funyuns, DiGiorno, Kool-Aid, Burger King, and others posting their own Area 51 takes, earning them a collective "silence, brand" from most of the internet.

Facebook briefly removed the event page in late July, telling Roberts it violated community standards. After media coverage of the takedown, Facebook restored it, calling the removal "a mistake".

How to Use This Meme

Storm Area 51 memes typically follow a few common formats:

Alien rescue fantasies: Post an image or animation showing what you'd do with your new alien friend after liberating them from Area 51. Common scenarios include introducing your alien to human food, movies, or social customs.

Tactical planning: Create mock battle plans, maps, or military-style strategies for breaching the base. The more absurd the better, such as suggesting that "Kyles" fueled by Monster Energy should form an "impenetrable wall".

Government reaction: Imagine what military personnel are thinking as millions of shitposters RSVP to raid their facility.

Naruto run references: Depict people or characters doing the Naruto run toward some goal, usually captioned with a variation of "they can't stop all of us".

Object labeling: Apply the Storm Area 51 framework to other situations, labeling one side as the "raiders" and another as the "guards" to comment on any lopsided confrontation.

Cultural Impact

Storm Area 51 crossed from internet joke to mainstream news within days. Every major U.S. outlet covered it, from CNN to Fox News. The Air Force issued official statements, the FBI visited the creator's home, and the FAA enacted flight restrictions. An Oklahoma animal shelter repurposed the trend, asking people to "storm" their facility and adopt pets instead of raiding a military base.

Bud Light produced a limited "Alien Brew" with an alien on the label. A wave of other brands jumped on, though Mashable documented how most of these corporate attempts fell flat with audiences. Lil Nas X's *Old Town Road* remix video, released during peak Storm Area 51 fever, folded the meme into what was already the biggest song in the country. Kevin Jonas suggested the Jonas Brothers' Happiness Begins Tour could play the "post-raid rave".

The event cost the U.S. military an estimated $11 million in preparation, a figure Colonel Craddock defended by citing the range of worst-case scenarios including a potential mass casualty event. The meme's real-world impact on Rachel, Nevada was significant: a town of 54 people had to prepare for thousands of visitors, straining local infrastructure and prompting emergency declarations from two Nevada counties.

Netflix later featured the saga in its *Trainwreck* docuseries, released July 29, 2025, treating it as a case study in how internet jokes can spiral into costly real-world events.

Full History

The viral momentum of Storm Area 51 created a problem Roberts hadn't anticipated: people might actually show up. The FBI visited his home, grilling him about his social life, religious beliefs, and whether he was genuinely planning an assault on a military installation. Roberts reassured them it was a joke but was told it was his "ass" if anyone tried to breach the base.

Seeing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Roberts partnered with Connie West, owner of the Little A'Le'Inn in Rachel, Nevada, the closest town to Area 51 with a population of just 54 people. They planned "Alienstock," a Burning Man-style EDM music festival to coincide with the September 20 date. Projections suggested as many as 30,000 attendees might descend on the tiny desert town. Roberts recruited promoter "Disco Donnie" Estopinal to help organize.

But the partnership fell apart days before the event. Roberts pulled out over disputes about security, sanitation, medical personnel, and insurance permits. He pivoted to hosting an "Area 51 Celebration" at the Downtown Las Vegas Events Center, sponsored by Bud Light, who released a limited-edition alien-themed beer called "Bud Light Alien Brew" for the occasion. West went ahead with her own version in Rachel, renaming it due to a legal dispute with Roberts over the "Alienstock" name. A third event, Storm Area 51 Basecamp, was planned in nearby Hiko.

Lincoln and Nye counties in Nevada drafted emergency declarations in preparation. The FAA posted temporary flight restrictions over areas near the base. The Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS), the military's public relations office, posted a since-deleted tweet on September 20 showing a B-2 stealth bomber with the caption "The last thing #Millennials will see if they attempt the #area51raid today," then issued an apology after backlash.

On the morning of September 20, roughly 150 people showed up at the two entrances to Area 51 around 3 a.m.. The scene was equal parts anticlimax and spectacle: costumed attention seekers, Pepe the Frog heads, YouTubers, and reporters outnumbered genuine alien hunters. The crowd chanted "Clap them cheeks!" while journalists filmed. One woman in her 20s was detained after attempting to cross the gate. Laura Prater, 65, became the only person to actually duck under the gate and walk toward the facility. She was arrested and her husband paid $1,000 bail. About 1,500 people attended the competing festivals in Rachel and Hiko combined.

The U.S. military had taken no chances, recruiting additional manpower, vehicles, and weapons for what Colonel Cavan Craddock later called "by far the largest defense of the base that has ever happened on the installation". The total cost of military preparation was an estimated $11 million. Roberts, for his part, made $1,700 selling T-shirts at the Las Vegas event. About 10,000 people attended the Las Vegas celebration. The following week, he was back working at his vape kiosk in Bakersfield.

The meme's afterlife proved durable. British oddmaker BookMaker.eu had set the over/under on event sign-ups at 2.3 million and placed the odds of aliens actually being discovered at -40,000 (meaning a $40 bet would win $1). Pornhub reported searches for "Area 51" surging from zero to 160,000 in just four days during mid-July. In July 2025, Netflix released *Trainwreck: Storm Area 51*, a two-part documentary exploring how Roberts' joke spiraled into a near-military incident, featuring interviews with Colonel Craddock, Lincoln County Sheriff Kerry Lee, and Roberts himself.

Fun Facts

Roberts was inspired to create the event after watching Bob Lazar on Joe Rogan's podcast, but he wasn't taking Lazar's claims seriously. "First and foremost, it's a shitposting page," he told Vox.

The event was briefly deleted by Facebook for violating community standards. Facebook later called it "a mistake" and restored the page as if nothing happened.

Pornhub reported that searches for "Area 51" went from zero to 160,000 in four days, and women were 33% more likely than men to search for "alien" content during the surge.

After the whole ordeal, Roberts made just $1,700 from selling T-shirts. He went right back to working at his vape kiosk in Bakersfield the following week.

The military's preparation for the event, at an estimated $11 million, cost roughly 6,500 times more than Roberts earned from it.

Derivatives & Variations

Storm the Bermuda Triangle

A spinoff event created by Dominick Carnovale, who explicitly said he wanted to divert people from the "dangerous" Area 51 plan[5].

Storm Loch Ness

A UK-based copycat event proposing a mass search for the Loch Ness Monster[5].

Storm the Woodchip Pile

A Tasmanian version targeting a woodchip pile at the Port of Burnie, which attracted over 1,000 RSVPs before Tasmania Police called the 17-year-old creator into the station and shut it down[14].

Storm BlizzCon 2019

A politically motivated variant protesting Activision Blizzard's censorship of a gamer who supported Hong Kong protesters[7].

Storm the Vatican Archives

A copycat event proposing a raid on the Vatican City's secret archives[10].

Alienstock / Area 51 Celebration

Real-world music festivals spawned by the meme, held in Rachel, Hiko, and Las Vegas on the event weekend[1][3].

Bud Light Alien Brew

A limited-edition alien-themed beer released by Bud Light to capitalize on the meme[8].

Frequently Asked Questions

References (20)

Storm Area 51

2019Facebook event / participatory memeclassic

Also known as: Storm Area 51 They Can't Stop All of Us · Area 51 Raid

Storm Area 51 is a June 2019 satirical Facebook event by Matty Roberts titled "They Can't Stop All of Us," rallying millions to Naruto-run into Area 51 searching for aliens.

TL;DR

Storm Area 51 was a satirical Facebook event created on June 27, 2019, by Matty Roberts, a 20-year-old college student from Bakersfield, California.

Overview

Storm Area 51 is a meme born from a Facebook event that proposed a mass civilian raid on Area 51, the classified U.S. Air Force facility in Nevada long associated with UFO conspiracy theories. The premise was simple and absurd: if enough people showed up at once, the military couldn't stop them all. The event's description suggested attendees use the "Naruto run," a distinctive running style from the anime series *Naruto* where characters sprint with their arms stretched behind them, to outrun bullets. The meme generated thousands of image macros, video edits, and shitposts imagining what people would find inside the base, how they'd befriend their rescued aliens, and the various tactical approaches to breaching government security.

On the evening of June 27, 2019, Matty Roberts was scrolling Facebook after watching an episode of *The Joe Rogan Experience* featuring Bob Lazar, a self-proclaimed Area 51 whistleblower who claimed to have reverse-engineered alien spacecraft at the base. Roberts, a Bakersfield College student who worked at a vape kiosk in the Valley Plaza Mall, ran a small Facebook shitposting page called "Shitposting cause I'm in shambles". That night, he created a Facebook event rather than a typical image post, setting it for September 20, 2019, from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m. PDT at Amargosa Valley near the base.

The event description read: "We will all meet up at the Area 51 Alien Center tourist attraction and coordinate our entry. If we Naruto run, we can move faster than their bullets. Lets see them aliens". Roberts later described the idea as "the ultimate shitpost," expecting it to get a few laughs from his page's roughly 40 followers. For the first three days, it picked up only about 40 responses. Then it exploded.

Origin & Background

Platform

Facebook

Key People

Matty Roberts, SmyleeKun

Date

2019

Year

2019

On the evening of June 27, 2019, Matty Roberts was scrolling Facebook after watching an episode of *The Joe Rogan Experience* featuring Bob Lazar, a self-proclaimed Area 51 whistleblower who claimed to have reverse-engineered alien spacecraft at the base. Roberts, a Bakersfield College student who worked at a vape kiosk in the Valley Plaza Mall, ran a small Facebook shitposting page called "Shitposting cause I'm in shambles". That night, he created a Facebook event rather than a typical image post, setting it for September 20, 2019, from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m. PDT at Amargosa Valley near the base.

The event description read: "We will all meet up at the Area 51 Alien Center tourist attraction and coordinate our entry. If we Naruto run, we can move faster than their bullets. Lets see them aliens". Roberts later described the idea as "the ultimate shitpost," expecting it to get a few laughs from his page's roughly 40 followers. For the first three days, it picked up only about 40 responses. Then it exploded.

How It Spread

Facebook briefly removed the event page in late July, telling Roberts it violated community standards. After media coverage of the takedown, Facebook restored it, calling the removal "a mistake".

How to Use This Meme

Storm Area 51 memes typically follow a few common formats:

Government reaction: Imagine what military personnel are thinking as millions of shitposters RSVP to raid their facility.

Naruto run references: Depict people or characters doing the Naruto run toward some goal, usually captioned with a variation of "they can't stop all of us".

Object labeling: Apply the Storm Area 51 framework to other situations, labeling one side as the "raiders" and another as the "guards" to comment on any lopsided confrontation.

Cultural Impact

Netflix later featured the saga in its *Trainwreck* docuseries, released July 29, 2025, treating it as a case study in how internet jokes can spiral into costly real-world events.

Full History

Fun Facts

Roberts was inspired to create the event after watching Bob Lazar on Joe Rogan's podcast, but he wasn't taking Lazar's claims seriously. "First and foremost, it's a shitposting page," he told Vox.

The event was briefly deleted by Facebook for violating community standards. Facebook later called it "a mistake" and restored the page as if nothing happened.

Pornhub reported that searches for "Area 51" went from zero to 160,000 in four days, and women were 33% more likely than men to search for "alien" content during the surge.

After the whole ordeal, Roberts made just $1,700 from selling T-shirts. He went right back to working at his vape kiosk in Bakersfield the following week.

The military's preparation for the event, at an estimated $11 million, cost roughly 6,500 times more than Roberts earned from it.

Derivatives & Variations

Storm the Bermuda Triangle

A spinoff event created by Dominick Carnovale, who explicitly said he wanted to divert people from the "dangerous" Area 51 plan[5].

Storm Loch Ness

A UK-based copycat event proposing a mass search for the Loch Ness Monster[5].

Storm the Woodchip Pile

A Tasmanian version targeting a woodchip pile at the Port of Burnie, which attracted over 1,000 RSVPs before Tasmania Police called the 17-year-old creator into the station and shut it down[14].

Storm BlizzCon 2019

A politically motivated variant protesting Activision Blizzard's censorship of a gamer who supported Hong Kong protesters[7].

Storm the Vatican Archives

A copycat event proposing a raid on the Vatican City's secret archives[10].

Alienstock / Area 51 Celebration

Real-world music festivals spawned by the meme, held in Rachel, Hiko, and Las Vegas on the event weekend[1][3].

Bud Light Alien Brew

A limited-edition alien-themed beer released by Bud Light to capitalize on the meme[8].