Town sees flock of birds die mysteriously two years in a row

Around 200 birds have mysteriously fallen to their death in a US town for the second New Year's Eve in a row.

Officials were at first unaware why the blackbirds had fallen out of the sky, but police now believe fireworks set off in Beebe, Arkansas, may have been the reason.

Ginny Porter, spokeswoman for Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, told the City Journal newspaper: "We believe the fireworks that went off at midnight were intentional."

On New Year's Eve in 2010, officials were trying to understand what had caused the death of 5,000 blackbirds in the area.