UFO ROUNDUP Volume 4 Number 12
Volume 4
Number 12
March 22, 1999
Editor: Joseph Trainor
E-mail: Masinaigan@aol.com
WILD WEEK IN BRAZIL: UFOs, POWER BLACKOUT AND CHUPACABRA
On Thursday, March 11, 1999, at 10 p.m., a mysterious electrical blackout knocked out power to several states of Brazil.
Losing all electrical power were the states of Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Parana, Minas Gerais, Santa Catarina, Goias, Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul.
Three electrical utilities were affected by the unprecedented blackout--FURNAS, Itaip and Vale do Sao Francisco. According to Brazilian television reports, the blackout originated at a power station in Bauru, 350 kilometers (210 miles) northwest of Sao Paulo, Brazil's largest city.
Power was out for four hours in the states of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais and in portions of Espiritu Santo state.
The blackout lasted only fifteen minutes in Goias, Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul and in the city of Brasilia, the national capital.
At midnight, FURNAS restored power to the states of Parana and Santa Catarina.
UFOs were seen in two Brazilian cities just prior to the blackout.
In Londrina, capital of Parana state, located 300 kilometers (180 miles) southwest of Bauru, witnesses saw a luminous disc cross the night sky at a very high velocity.
In Itu, a city 150 kilometers (90 miles) west of Sao Paulo, eyewitness Joao Cardes do Santos "at the time of the blackout went outside of his house and watched the sky, which was clear. At that moment he saw three strange glowing objects. They were silvery and bigger than an airplane. They were hovering at a low altitude over the power cables that come from the hydroelectric station at Itaip (and go) to Sao Paulo. They departed in a straight direction at high speed."
Three days after the blackout came the report of a Chupacabra attack in the state of Parana.
The morning of Sunday, March 14, 1999, Sra. Maria Moretti went outdoors to feed her chickens in Vila Reis, a country town 420 kilometers (242 miles) southwest of Londrina, and noticed some strange grooves in the ground. Looking closer, she saw that the grooves were filled with coagulated blood.
"Dozens of birds were found dead yesterday morning (March 14) at a farm in the district of Vila Reis, 360 kilometers from Apucarana. The majority of the dead animals had no puncture marks, and each one sustained a shattered skull. Locals credited the attack to chupacabras, as was seen in past years."
(Editor's Note: The state of Parana was the scene of a major Chupacabra flap in 1997.)
"The owner of the poultry, Maria Moretti, did not observe anything wrong in the yard. What called her attention to the situation was the discovery of ground grooves filled with coagulated blood." (See the newspaper Gazeta do Povo for March 15, 1999, "O Chupacabras volta a atacar aves no morte do Parana." Muito obrigado ao Thiago Ticchetti e Carlos Machado por esos casos.)
UFO FLAP BREAKS OUT IN QUEBEC AND ONTARIO
On Friday, March 5, 1999, Gaetan Desjardins took his dog for a walk in Ile Bizard, Quebec, Canada. At 5:35 p.m., he reports, "I was walking my dog in the woods, enjoying a beautiful sunset. On my way back home, I stopped to admire the sunset. After maybe-- I don't know--30 seconds to a minute, on my right at two o'clock (position) right above the trees, I saw this orange light. Believe me, I have never seen a thing like this before."
"The light then made a sharp turn to eleven o'clock, still ahead of me now. What's amazing is that the light made sparking but not of light. Sparking of metal. Sparks every few seconds. Then, all of a sudden, the light became long like a cigar, and in the middle (there was) an orange light."
"I heard no noise...before going down behind the trees, the cigar-shape became a bright light again. As I witnessed this, I had a strange feeling of not being in control of my body. Was I hypnotized or just terrified? I don't know, but I am not the type to be scared for nothing," he reported, adding that he had the UFO in view for "two to five minutes."
In Ontario, a UFO flap erupted on the north shore of Lake Huron. Several sightings took place in Blind River, Ont. (population 3,353), a town on Provincial Highway 17 about 150 kilometers (90 miles) east of Sault Sainte Marie.
"While driving from Elliott Lake to her home in Blind River, one witness saw a large, ball-shaped light in the night sky, which suddenly blinked out. The sighting took place Monday, February 22."
"Then on Friday, February 26, at around midnight, a red light was seen hovering over some (Canadian National) railroad tracks in Blind River by three witnesses in two separate vehicles. The one in front was driven by a male witness, a carpenter, who was heading home. The second vehicle was being driven by a woman who was accompanied by her daughter."
"The driver of the first car pulled over to the side of the road to get a good look at the light. He was about 30 to 40 feet away from it, as it hovered there. Suddenly, the light started to move, and the driver sped away."
"As the second car drove by, the two witnesses spotted the object as it went into the clouds." They then spoke to the carpenter, who "described it as a red pulsating light approximately 30 inches (about 75 centimeters) in diameter."
"And more recently, on Saturday, March 13, (1999) at around 3 a.m., the same woman (witness) got up to go to the bathroom and heard a low hum, similar to an electrical sound, which she thought was coming from the refrigerator. When she walked out of the bathroom, she noticed that the hum was much louder and was coming from outside. She put on her coat and Ski-Doo boots and went out to investigate."
"And, as she looked up, she saw a large cigar- shaped object as it flew over her house. She said it was traveling from west to east. It contained a large cylindrical light at the front, followed by a smaller light at the back, like a horizontal exclamation mark. She observed it for about ten to fifteen seconds, then ran into the house to get her binoculars. When she came back out, the object was further away to the east, and the humming sound was faint. The witness said the object was lower than a jet, but as high as a small plane. The sighting lasted approximately five minutes." (See the Sudbury, Ont. Star for March 15, 1999. Many thanks to Michel M. Deschamps, MUFON provincial section director, for forwarding the newspaper article.)
On Tuesday, March 2, 1999, Raymond C. reports, "My son came in the house and said he saw something unusual in the sky" over Kingston, Ont. (population 56,597.) "My wife went out at first to view it, followed by myself. The object appeared as bright as a star or even brighter, with no blinking lights. It was going away from us at a very high rate of speed. The brightness of it diminished as it passed behind the vapor trail of a passing jet. The object was easily visible, quite bright in appearance, and was as large as a bright star."
Raymond spoke to his wife for a moment, but, when he looked again, the UFO was gone. "I was somewhat surprised that I could no longer see it, after only glancing away for a second."
Kingston is on Provincial Highway 33 about 161 miles (258 kilometers) east of Toronto. (Email Interview)
On Friday, March 12, 1999, Raul M. and his two daughters spotted a UFO while driving through the East York section of Toronto.
Raul reports, "Last Friday, at about 6 p.m., while I was driving with my two daughters on Sheppard Avenue, East, we spotted something that looked like a white straw flying at about the same altitude as a commercial aircraft (i.e. 25,000 to 35,000 feet--J.T.) It was flying at about 30 degrees above the horizon, traveling from north to south. It seemed to look like a cloud--a strange flat and long cloud. The whole sighting lasted for about a minute. We lost it behind some buildings after that. My daughters were in shock. As for myself, I cannot say for sure what it was. What I am certainly sure of is that it was not a cloud, an airplane, a jet, glare or anything I had ever seen before. If it were up to me to estimate the size of it, I would say that it was the length of five or six (Boeing) 747s put together." (Email Interview)
RECTANGULAR UFO TERRIFIES LABORERS IN MALAWI
A rectangular UFO caused much excitement among construction workers at a village in Malawi, a small nation in southern Africa.
"Workers who were constructing a new primary school at Siledi village in the Mwanza district," in the southwest corner of Malawi, "had the shock of their lives recently when an object resembling a coffin (i.e. a large rectangular box) flew over their houses just after 9 o'clock at night."
"A store clerk at the project Makaika told MANA (Malawi News Agency--J.T.) that at exactly 9 p.m. they heard a heavy wind blowing over their houses."
"'We thought it was a storm, but when we went out, we saw a black coffin cruising past our rooftops,'" the clerk told MANA. (See the Daily Times of Blantyre, Malawi for March 10, 1999, "'Coffin' flies over houses." Many thanks to CNI correspondent Diane Cammack for forwarding the newspaper article.)
CIGAR-SHAPED UFO FLIES OVER MILAN, ITALY
On Saturday, March 13, 1999, at 11:30 p.m., witnesses in Milano (Milan) saw "a cigar-shaped object with two small lights flying above the city at an altitude of 500 meters (1,650 feet)." The UFO flew in an erratic pattern, "not regular movements."
"The object was strange in that its shape was not perfectly defined," said Fabnzio Monaco of CISETI. "It would change its shape. The object was illuminated on the bottom. The object disappeared on the horizon after fifteen minutes."
UFO Roundup readers in Europe can contact CISETI at this email address: F.Monaco@agora.stm.it (Grazie a Fabrizio Monaco per questo rapporto.)
UFOs IN NORTHERN OHIO SEEN BY RESIDENTS AND POLICE
On Thursday, March 11, 1999, at 11:30 p.m., residents in Lemont, Illinois (population 7,348), a suburb 20 miles (32 kilometers) southwest of Chicago, spotted a strange UFO passing overhead. They described it as "a black pyramid with three bright lights."
The UFO was also reportedly seen by a jetliner crew on final approach into Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.
Fifteen minutes later, a triangular UFO was sighted over Clyde, Ohio (population 5,776), a town on Route 20 17 miles (27 kilometers) southwest of Sandusky. A call was received by the Sandusky County Sheriff's Department, which sent Sgt. Michael McGuire, Unit 215, to investigate.
"Complainant stated she was heading towards Clyde on (State Route) SR101. She stated that she observed what appeared to be a UFO," the police report said. "She said that the UFO looked like a triangle in shape and had three red lights on the bottom. She stated that it was directly overhead and stated that she could not determine the height or distance but stated she could visibly see it was triangle in shape and very distinct red lights. She stated that it was in view for several minutes and then...the UFO sped away in an unknown direction."
Three days later, on Sunday, March 14, 1999, at 11:30 p.m., a family living in Fremont, Ohio (population 17,648), about 10 miles (16 kilometers) west of Clyde, phoned the sheriff's department to report UFOs hovering in the sky to the southwest of their home.
"'They were not stars,'" the witness told Cincinnati UFO researcher Kenneth Young. "'They were cigar- shaped oscillating lights. Several of them were sitting out there to the west of us, moving in a triangular pattern. They were not airplanes or helicopters. Ones that were closest seemed to have a white light underneath them and another light on top...The most I ever saw at one time were five or six of them. Most of the time, there were three in a triangular pattern."
Investigating the sighting was Deputy Amor of the Sandusky County Sheriff's Department. The police report stated, "Complainant called Dispatch and indicated that he was observing a strange array of lights in the sky that appeared to be to the southwest...As I responded to the call, I first observed the cluster of lights as I was at the west end" near Route 712 and County Road 126.
"They appeared to be red, green or yellow in color. I continued south on State Route 53 and then west on State Route 12. The lights did not appear to be getting closer, so I pulled my cruiser over at the intersection of County Road 12 and State Route 12, in order to retrieve my field glasses from the trunk." (Boot in UK- J.T.)
"I was unable to identify the object through my field glasses. The lights appeared to be illuminating in a steady fashion. I did not observe any blinking or change in brightness...Although the light did not appear to be moving at a high rate of speed, its height and distance from my location made it difficult, if not impossible, to estimate...The object did not appear to be posing a threat or acting in any way that could have been interpreted as hostile. I returned to routine patrol." (Many thanks to Kenneth Young and to Tim Hagemeister of NACOMM for this report.)
TWO GREEN UFOs SPOTTED OFFSHORE IN HAWAII
On Sunday, March 14, 1999, at 1:15 a.m., airline pilot Luca R. was "coming home from work" when he "noticed two bright green lights floating in the sky with a very strange pattern. Their location was towards the southwest from the island of Kauai," in the Hawaiian Islands.
"They were of the same size as the stars in the background but at a much lower altitude," Luca reported. "Their motion was very strange, slow but active, a short straight line but with abrupt changes in direction, and slowly gaining altitude, almost straight up until they were gone."
"There was a friend with me. We are both cynical pilots and we have never seen anything like this. For sure they were not a conventional aircraft." (Email Interview)
UFO SIGHTINGS CONTINUE IN COLORADO
UFO sightings are still going on in Colorado, with two new cases reported last week.
On Wednesday, February 24, 1999, at 9:30 p.m., UFO investigator Christopher O'Brien was at his home in Crestone, Colorado (population 400) when he received a telephone call.
Fellow ufologist Fabian Sauvo, Chris said, "was reporting a brilliant red light flying west to east just north of Center, Colo. (population 1,963) I ran outside with my cellular phone and, sure enough, there was a large red light between Crestone, where I live, and Center. The light ducked into a cloud" over Great Sand Dunes National Monument east of Colorado Highway 17 "and didn't come out. I waited to see if I could get a better look, but it either turned off its light or remained in the cloud...After waiting around for 15 minutes, I gave up." (Many thanks to Christopher O'Brien for this report. Chris's new book, Enter the Valley, is still on sale at bookstores throughout the USA.)
On Tuesday, March 16, 1999, Charles M. and his family observed a UFO over Aurora, Colorado (population 222,103), a suburb on Highway30 about six miles (10 kilometers) east of Denver.
"We were looking south when we saw the light. I am guessing it was at an angle of 10 to 15 degrees up from the horizon," Charles stated, "We observed the light on Tuesday only for a few minutes. The lights on the object were blinking red and blue. My wife took some video of the light. I observed the video last night. It is not very good. She had the Autofocus on, and it would not stay in focus."
On Wednesday, March 17, 1999, the family spotted the UFO "at around 8 p.m. The light was about 15 degrees to the west of us and just over the top of a neighbor's house. We waited about an hour and returned outside to discover if the light had moved. This time the light had moved about 35 degrees forward and dropped almost to the horizon. to about 5 to 10 degrees above the horizon. I did not return until about an hour later, and they had completely disappeared. I walked down the street because the house across the street was blocking my view. The light was nowhere to be seen." (Email Interview)
BLACK HELICOPTERS FLY FAST AND FURIOUS ACROSS THE USA
More black helicopter reports came pouring in last week from several states of the USA, plus one report of a strange truck convoy in upstate New York.
According to Pennsylvania ufologist Stan Gordon, on Thursday, March 18, 1999, between 3 and 3:30 a.m., there were dozens of black helicopter sightings all around the city of Pittsburgh.
"There were numerous accounts of one or more military helicopters reported from many locations in southwestern Pennsylvania," Stan reported. "The choppers reportedly were flying quite low and observed by many people."
"I also received a report at 3:05 a.m. from the Pennsylvania/West Virginia border--a military chopper flew over a house at an altitude estimated as less than 500 feet. The chopper came from the south and went towards the north." (Many thanks to Stan Gordon for this report.)
On Wednesday, March 17, 1999, at 8:30 p.m., a black helicopter reportedly buzzed a ufologist's home just south of Indianapolis.
According to Richard Broadstreet of UFO Research Center of Indianapolis, "I saw it pass over my house and going north. It was so low, I heard the whirring of the (rotor) blades over the TV's sound. It was real low and heading towards downtown Indianapolis."
Fifteen minutes later, at 8:45 p.m., he added, "It just passed over my house again and was heading south. It was as low as it was the first time."
On Thursday, March 4, 1999, residents of Cedar Hill, Texas (population 19,976), a town on Highway 67 about 15 miles (25 kilometers( southwest of Dallas, sighted "three black helicopters hovering at treetop height" over a residential neighborhood.
On Monday, March 15, 1999, at about 6:30 p.m., a solitary black helicopter, identified as a UH-60 Blackhawk, flew southward across Tampa Bay and hovered for five minutes over East Fourth Avenue in St. Petersburg, Florida (population 238,629), a large city on the Gulf of Mexico approximately 260 miles (416 kilometers) northwest of Miami.
Amazingly, witnesses said the helicopter had been performing the same odd maneuver for 21 consecutive days. The chopper retreated due north, following the same flight path as its approach.
On Saturday, March 13, 1999, a solitary black UH-60 helicopter flew slow circles and hovered over Inniswold, Louisiana, a town on Highway 73 about eight miles (11 kilometers) southeast of Baton Rouge, the state capital. (Many thanks to Newswatch magazine for March 16, 1999 for these reports.)
And, in the category of strange convoys, Claudia C. reported a weird incident that happened to her as she was driving on Interstate I-90, the New York Thruway, near Albany, the state capital.
"I was enroute to my mother's house off Exit 23 in Albany," Claudia stated, adding that the incident occurred on a Saturday in late January 1999. "I moved over into the middle lane to pass a slow-moving vehicle. I was driving along very nicely when all of a sudden a loud airhorn blew from behind at me. I jumped and was startled to see" a large, heavy-duty trailer truck that "looked like it was almost in my back seat, it was so close."
"The blue and white truck was so high you couldn't seen the inside of the cab. I was going almost 70 (miles per hour--J.T.) and instead of passing me in the fast lane, he tried to push me out of the way. The truck was huge, much bigger than a regular truck and at least the size of a large tractor trailer, plus half the length of (another) one. This guy was going at least 80 miles per hour. It (the tank trailer) said Water on the side."
"Then I saw three identical (water) trucks traveling fast right behind him. They wanted the middle lane, and they wanted everyone out of the way. There were no (license) plates on their vehicles--nothing to indicate where they came from."
Stopping at the toll plaza, Claudia noticed that the four trucks "were at a booth where you swipe a card (to get through) instead of paying money." As she headed for Exit 23, she "was seeking in my mirror for the giant trucks when I noticed a pickup truck was waiting by the side of the highway with a white flag on the back of the truck on a pole...I saw the giant trucks follow with the Thruway truck leading the way. They headed toward the south as I exited the Thruway. Let me tell you, they were going 80 miles per hour, perhaps 90."
As for her thoughts on the incident, Claudia added, "I heard that FEMA moved into the mountains in Thatcher Park and wondered if they (the convoy) were part of the secret government shenanigans we all read about. This ole girl was becoming a raving paranoid real quick!" (Email Interview)
Y2K: MARINES MAY OCCUPY THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
A unit of the U.S. Marine Corps stationed in the District of Columbia underwent riot training at the USMC base in Quantico, Virginia last week to deal with urban unrest in the USA's capital as a result of the Year 2000 computer problem.
According to the Washington Post, "A contingent from the Marine Corps Barracks at Eighth and I Streets in southeast Washington traveled to Quantico Marine Corps Base in Virginia recently to train for handling civil unrest."
The diamond-shaped District of Columbia, which contains the city of Washington, lies on the borders of Maryland and Virginia and is adminstered by the USA Congress.
"The scenario, played out at a mock training city at Quantico, had government workers infuriated that the problems associated with the year 2000 computer problem prevent paychecks from being issued."
"The Marines, equipped with riot shields and concertina wire, were able to save the republic from marauding workers--at least in the practice run." (See the Washington Post for March 18, 1999, "Marines train in preparation for workers' potential Y2K anger" by Steve Fogel, page J06.)
NEBRASKA'S INCREDIBLE RATTLESNAKE CHURCH
Bethany Presbyterian Church in Lemoyne, Nebraska (population 40) has a unique claim to Fortean fame--it was once besieged by a legion of rattlesnakes.
In the late 1930s, the government began construction on the Kingsley Dam, which now spans the North Platte River. As the waters backed up six miles to form what is now Lake McConaughy, residents realized that they would have to move several buildings on the floodplain.
"So over the next couple of years, townspeople moved every building they could to higher ground. The church was relocated to a hill overlooking the lake."
By October 1941, Bethany Presbyterian Church was ready to reopen. A new pastor was hired, and the church basement was ready for use.
"Ladies of the community planned a workday to clean and prepare for the revival. That's when they discovered they weren't the only ones who'd left the valley to escape the rising waters."
"Rattlesnakes had chosen the churchyard as a place to congregate. In fact, on that day and over the next several months, 90 rattlers were rounded up in and around the church."
"Church services were understandably put on hold for a while. But eventually the saints won out over the snakes. The faithful people refurbished the old sanctuary and began holding regular services."
Lemoyne is on Nebraska Highway 92 about 104 miles (166 kilometers) southeast of Scottsbluff. (See Country magazine for April/May 1999, "Country Church Survives High Water and Rattlesnakes," by Lois Dunwoody, page 43.) (Editor's Comment: Although the rising river had something to do with it, there are places in North America which attract hundreds or thousands of rattlesnakes. Offhand I know of three here in the New England states--Rattlesnake Mountain in Rumney Depot, New Hampshire...Glastenbury Mountain, east of Shaftsbury, Vermont...and Tatnic Hill, just east of Scotland, Connecticut.)
from the UFO Files...
1485: EXPRESS TO PELLUCIDAR
Tales of tunnels under the Andes are very old... and quite commonplace..in Ecuador. And one of these tales dates back to before the Spanish conquest and involves Huayna Capac, the ninth Inca emperor.
In 1485, then-prince Huayna Capac was given command of the army and ordered by his father, Inca Tupac Yupanqui, to extend the borders of Tawatinsuyu (the Incas' name for their South American empire--J.T.) northward from Quito.
After much campaigning, Huayna Capac laid siege to Otavallu (modern Otavalo, Ecuador, 100 kilometers north of Quito).
"The war lasted for two years. It was a very modern war, in duration, and none got the upper hand."
Otavallu, you see, was a fairly advanced civilization, like the Incas. The city was already thousands of years old when Manco Capac and his sister-wife, Mama Ocllo Huallpa, left their home in Bolivia to wander the Andes, eventually founding the Inca capital of Cuzco around 900 A.D.
The city was ruled by a young and beautiful woman named Quillago. She was a heichera-colla (Quechua for sorceress-queen--J.T.) and, in addition to her queenly duties, presided with the high priestess over a religion devoted to a goddess of the moon, whose name, unfortunately, is lost to history.
"At last the queen was captured. The Inca sought to gain her over with rich presents, which she would not accept. Then he ordered her to be liberated."
Returning to Otavallu, Quilloga plotted with the elderly high priestess, Pichamba, to assassinate the Inca prince. She told Pichamba to hide a knife in the temple's subterranean chamber and then invited the Incas to a feast at her palace.
During the feast, Quilloga invited Huayna Capac to the temple to see their magical cenote (sacred well), which was supposed to lead to Uru Ticsi, the world below. The catch was, only the three of them could visit the subterranean chamber--the Inca prince, Quilloga and her high priestess.
Huayna Capac was no fool. He had Quilloga and Pachimba searched by Inca "chosen women," just as the queen knew he would, and when they were found to be unarmed, he agreed to accompany them to the temple.
"Hand in hand, Inca and Amazon queen descended the stairway to the inner chamber where the snare was all set."
There was something strange and eerie about the dank, stone-rimmed cenote. Strange hieroglyphics marked the well. At Quilloga's invitation, Huayna Capac leaned over and peered into the well. And surprisingly, a soft perfumed wind blew into his face. He couldn't believe it. A wind? This far below the ground?
The circular well seemed to fall away into infinity. At the bottom was a queer glimmer. Almost like a pinprick of daylight. As he looked into the well, the Inca felt disoriented. He later told his friends that he felt as if he were at the bottom of the well, looking upward towards a tiny spot of sunshine.
He struggled against a surge of vertigo. Seeing her chance, Quilloga glanced at the priestess. Pichamba's gaze darted to a nearby stone altar. The queen went directly to the spot, lifted a chahuar (alpaca shawl) and found the knife.
Maybe it was ESP or fate, or maybe it was just dumb luck, that saved the Inca. Closing his eyes, Huayna Capac stepped away from the cenote, then turned just in time to see Quilloga coming at him with the knife.
He "caught the lintel of the door, with his left hand, and fixing his feet strongly against the top of the well, heaved his body against the Amazon queen and caused her to stumble and pitch headlong," screaming, into the cenote.
"A shouting virago," Pichamba, "came at him with tooth and nail, but she, too, he siezed around the waist and sent her to join the queen at the bottom of the well."
The women's screams lasted for minutes, faded to whispers, and then there was silence. Hayna Capac listened carefully, but he never heard them hit the bottom. He also had no further desire to peer into Quilloga's magic well.
Instead, he marched out of the temple and took possession of Otavallu for the Inca empire. (See Secret Cities of Old South America by Harold T. Wilkins, 1952, reprinted 1998 by Adventures Unlimited Press, pages 151 and 152.)
Looks like we're running out of space. Join us next week for more saucer news from around the planet, brought to you by "the paper that goes home-- UFO Roundup." See you then.
UFO ROUNDUP: Copyright 1999 by Masinaigan Productions, all rights reserved. Readers may post news items from UFO Roundup on their websites or in newsgroups provided that they credit the newsletter and its editor by name and list the date of issue in which the item first appeared.
