There is a well known and studied phenomena, but not yet fully understood, that shows many eye witnesses reporting separately "facts" that are proven later to be completely fabricated. How this symbiosis works between different people in different locations remains a mystery.
The best example in aviation is the TWA 747 explosion near NY in 1996 . While the cause has been later well established ( explosion of central tank due faulty pump), may independent witnesses reported seeing a missile was launched. .
from wikipedia :
Although there were considerable discrepancies between different accounts, most witnesses to the accident had seen a "streak of light" that was unanimously described as ascending, moving to a point where a large fireball appeared, with several witnesses reporting that the fireball split in two as it descended toward the water.
[There was intense public interest in these witness reports and much speculation that the reported streak of light was a missile that had struck TWA 800, causing the airplane to explode.
[ These witness accounts were a major reason for the initiation and duration of the FBI's criminal investigation.
The official NTSB report explains this in more details for those interested.