Panic on the streets of London, panic on the streets of Birmingham. I wonder to myself - could life ever be sane again? (The Smiths)

Seth Godin makes a great point about surprise and uncertainty:

Until just recently, a solar eclipse wasn’t a tourist event. It was the cause of real panic.

Two reasons that are worth considering:It was a surprise. They were not predicted.
They were unexplained. No one had any idea what was going on.

Eliminate surprise and explain the circumstances and panic starts to fade.