UFO ROUNDUP Volume 5 Number 45
Volume 5
Number 45
November 9, 2000
Editor: Joseph Trainor
E-mail: Masinaigan@aol.com
WEIRD ANIMAL SHOT NEAR PENDLETON, OREGON
A weird animal, described as a fur-bearing quadruped, was shot in mid-October 2000 in the vicinity of Umatilla Woman Mountain, just southeast of Pendleton, Oregon (population 19,000).
"The skeleton of a large animal shot about two weeks ago" in the woods near Pendleton "remains unknown." "U.S. Fish and Wildlife (Service) officials said they may never learn if the animal killed was a wolf or a wolf hybrid in DNA testing."
"Phil Carroll, a spokesman for the agency, said they would not release the results."
(Editor's Comment: Oh? Since when does the Fish and Wildlife Service classify lab test results as Top Secret? Something's going on in Oregon.)
"Their reluctance to comment on the identity of the animal drew fire from Ric Bailey, executive director of the Hells Canyon Preservation Council."
"Bailey said the agency's behavior is of 'serious concern' and he called the agency's objectivity in the matter 'suspect.'"
"If the animal is in fact a wolf that wandered into Oregon from Idaho, it would be the first wolf shot in Oregon since the predators were exterminated decades ago."
Recently wolf tracks have been reported in the mountains of eastern Oregon."
Pendelton is on Interstate Highway I-84 approximately 208 miles (334 kilometers) east of Portland. (See the Sacramento, Cal. Bee for October 28, 2000. Many thanks to Gerry Lovell for this newspaper article.)
(Editor's Comment: And welcome to Weird Animal Week at UFO Roundup. We've had three "weird animal" reports, all in the same week. What a strange concentration of phenomena. Maybe it has something to do with the USA's national election.)
FARMER REPORTS SHOOTING A WEIRD ANIMAL IN CHILE
"Scientists at the Universidad Austral de Chile are dumbfounded by the enigmatic animal skull" a Chilean farmer brought in "since they are at a loss as to ascertain what species it belongs to."
"The animal was apparently shot last January (2000) in the Arique sector of the Tenth Region," south of Talcahuano, "by a farmer who had reported the strange deaths of a large number of fowl, particularly geese."
"Last May (2000), the same farmer reported that he had killed the strange creature," which he believes to be a Chupacabra.
"The hunter preserved only the head as a trophy and cast the rest of the body into a river. He later reported that since that day he has heard the sound of distant howling in the evening. It is his belief that it (the howling--J.T.) is the lonely female that accompanied the animal and continues prowling the region in search of her mate."
"The skull was ultimately delivered to the Universidad Austral. However, after four months of intensive research, including the extraction of DNA samples and their comparison with other species, it now turns out that the skull has scientists baffled, as they were unable to determine the exact nature of the beast in question."
"The discovery of the specimen has been described as 'very interesting' by the scientists because 'we are checking out a medium-sized animal which would have gone unnoticed by science for another century.'" (Muchas gracias a Scott Corrales, autor de los libros Chupacabras and Other Mysteries y Forbidden Mexico para esas noticias.)
GIANT LUMINOUS OCTOPUS CAUGHT BY FISHERMEN IN NORTHERN SPAIN
"Some Spanish fishermen have caught a strange specimen of a giant cephalopod in Cantabrian waters" off the northern coast of Spain.
"The creature, a Taningia danae, similar to the common octopus, weighed 125 kilograms, measuring over two meters (6 feet, 7 inches) in length and is the largest of its species ever discovered."
(Editor's Note: Taningia danae are usually found at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, about one mile or 1,600 meters below the surface. They generally weigh only 63 kilograms and, like fireflies, generate their own light so they can search for food on the dark ocean floor.)
Unfortunately for local gourmets in the Asturian port of Ribadesella, the cephalopod will never reach the dinner table since it is to be preserved and displayed in local marine life center." (See the Reuters report for November 4, 2000, "Giant light-emitting squid caught in Asturias." Otra vez, gracias a Scott Corrales para eso articulo de diario.)
"ANGEL HAIR" FALLS ON TWO TOWNS IN NORTHERN ITALY
On Wednesday, November 1, 2000,residents of Vercellese and Alessandri, two towns in the Piemonte region of northern Italy, heard an unusually loud boom. This "skyquake" rattled roof tiles and windows in both communities.
Immediately afterward, the residents saw "long sheer white filaments drifting down from the sky." The fibrous material fell most heavily in Vercellese but was also reported on the farms surrounding the town.
"The filaments were clearly 'angel's hair' or 'hair of the Virgin,' as it is called here in Italy, and it is usually associated with UFO phenomena," reported Italian ufologist Paolo Toselli, "Similar phenomena have also been reported in the United States." (Grazie a Paolo Toselli e Edoardo Russo di Centro Italiano di Studi Ufologici per questo rapportto.)
DARK TRIANGULAR UFO HOVERS OVER IDAHO CAMP
"Many rational people believe we are not alone in the universe. Three hunters in an unspecified location near Challis, Idaho (population 1,100) learned for themselves on the night of" Friday, "October 27, 2000 that this theory may hold water."
"The report revealed that an individual spotted a dark triangular object floating silently above him while he was standing by his pickup *truck), The hunter said he and his three buddies were in dry camp, so alcohol couldn't be blamed for what he and two of the others saw."
"The individual said that as he approached his pickup at about 9:45 p.m., he 'got a feeling of a thick, heavy blanket above me and chills down my spine.' He said he shined his flashlight on 'the dark triangular object floating directly above us and our camp trailer.'"
"The man fell into profane disbelief and then called for his buddies to come see for themselves. He said he could see the rounded dark edges and the flat bottom that had a texture like suede leather and was colored gold-gray."
"He said that after he shined his light on the object, it throttled up with a deep low sound of intense power and floated straight up and then forward up a steep canyon, moving like a hockey puck sliding on ice. The other party members grabbed their binoculars to check it out until it moved out of sight."
"The account said that as the object throttled up, three lights, one at each corner of the triangle, came on. Each one was about 10 feet (3 meters) in diameter and glowed like a dim dome light. Another light in the center was described as being 20 feet (6 meters) in diameter, protruding below the bottom of the object about eight feet (2.3 meters), was deep red and pulsed at (a rate of) once a second."
"The outline of the entire object had a light halo around it. The shape, wrote the hunter, was a perfect triangle radiant corners and rounded edges."
There was no smell, no feeling of blowing, no prop wash or thrust of any kind."
The Challis sighting is now being investigated by the National Institute of Discovery Science (NIDS). (See the Challis, Idaho Messenger for November 4, 2000, "Hunter reports UFO sighting near Challis." Many thanks to Louise A. Lowry for forwarding this newspaper article.)
STATE VET HAS ANSWER TO ROSWELL CATTLE MYSTERY
"Mystery no longer surrounds the cause of death of 30 cattle on Marcelo Macias's ranch near" Roswell, New Mexico (population 45,000.)
"It was nothing exotic. It was a weed."
"It was not, as a Boston (Massachusetts) radio station revealed Thursday morning," October 26, 2000, "caused by aliens."
"The culprit weed got wrapped into a one-ton bale of hay, was further ground up at the ranch corral and was then ingested by the cattle between dusk and dawn on the night of October 18," 2000.
"Twenty-three pregnant cows, three bulls and four early-season calves dropped dead in the darkness."
"Thurman Reitz, the assistant state veterinarian, said he got a report from a laboratory Thursday morning saying tests had shown evidence of nitrate poisoning."
"Reitz said the nitrate came from one or more common weeds that were harvested along with the grass in the hay bale. A specific weed hasn't been identified."
"'This can be pretty nasty stuff,' said Reitz, referring to the nitrate. 'Livestock poisoning like this happens occasionally but not to this extent.'"
"Reitz said nitrate poisoning alters the animal's blood and deprives it of oxygen."
"'Basically, they suffocate,' he said."
"Reitz said he got a call at 9:30 a.m. Thursday from a Boston radio station, wanting to know if aliens were involved in the deaths of the cattle. Reitz said he was barely awake until the caller got to this question."
"The veterinarian told the radio station that aliens weren't involved."
"At his ranch, Macias said he got the hay for free not long ago from a Hagerman (New Mexico) rancher who said the bales were three or four years old."
"New Mexican growers said hay that's three or four years old is still good 'if it has been stored right and it is covered over.'"
"Macias said he brought about 100 bales to his ranch and has 90 bales left."
"'I don't know what I'm going to do with them. The police told me I can't burn this much hay,' said Macias, whose ranch lies northeast of the Roswell city limits."
"'I've been feeding that hay to my sheep and nothing has happened, and no more of my cattle have died,' he said."
"Macias's son, Marcelo Jr., said the dead cattle were trucked away by a company that handles dead livestock."
Roswell, N.M. is located 198 miles (319 kilometers) southeast of Albuquerque.
(See the Albuquerque, N.M. Journal for October 27, 2000, "Weed killed cattle," by Fritz Thompson.)
HOVERING UFO SEEN NEAR DEMING, NEW MEXICO
On Thursday, October 26, 2000, at 8:10 p.m., Todd Hall "was driving west on Interstate Highway I-10 when I watched an object hovering over a mountain south of I-10. As I descended the mountain on I-10, I saw that the object was hovering over the town of Deming," which is located 80 miles (128 kilometers) west of Las Cruces.
"As I watched the object, I noticed that it appeared to change shape from time to time. Most of the time, the object kept a paint can (short cylinder--J.T.) shape and periodically changing to a wedge shape. I continued driving and studying the object for about 30 minutes. At one point, I even pulled to the side of the road so as to pay more attention to the thing."
"After about 30 minutes, the object changed to a flat shape and moved up vertically for about three seconds and then just vanished."
Todd described the UFO as "dark in color with a slight metallic look. Estimated height between 1,000 and 2,000 feet (300 and 600 meters). Object stayed fairly stationary, moving slightly to the west." (Email Form Report)
THREE UFOs RENDEZVOUS OVER PEORIA, ARIZONA
On Sunday, November 5, 2000, at about 1 a.m., Mark Denton rode his motorcycle into the driveway of his home in Peoria, Arizona (population 85,000). He reports, "I just got home from work, got off my motorcycle and happened to see two yellow/orange lights traveling very close to each other, heading north slowly. They sort of danced around each other while hovering. As I watched, a third light approached from the southwest. It reached the general area but stayed a little further away from the two that were close to each other."
"The two converged to seem as one while turning three or four times. Going in three different directions, they individually got way further away from Earth, when they all disappeared. The last one looked like it split in two just before it was gone."
Peoria is on Highway 74 about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northwest of Phoenix. (Email Form Report)
"STATION ALPHA" NOW HAS CREW OF THREE ABOARD
On Tuesday morning, October 31, 2000, a Soyuz rocket lifted off the pad at the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, carrying three astronauts who will serve as the first permanent crew of the International Space Station.
"The crew blasted off from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan after drinking champagne and receiving the blessing of a Russian Orthodox priest."
"The Soyuz rocket carrying" USA astronaut William "Bill" Shepherd and Russian cosmonauts Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalyov took off on schedule, slicing through the morning fog hovering over the Kazakh steppe."
"'This is probably the most significant event in manned spaceflight since the the launch of Yuri Gagarin almost 40 years ago,' said Richard LaBrode, the U.S. flight director for the space station. 'It is the last day, barring unforeseen circumstances, that we will not have a human presence in space.'"
"'This is a big achievement. Russia, which put the first man in space, and the United States, which put the first man on the moon, have joined hands,' said Valery Alaverdov, deputy head of the Russian Space Agency. 'It is inevitable that these two great countries work together to take space exploration into the new millenium."
"As he boarded the bus in his bulky white-and-blue spacesuit Tuesday morning, Shepherd seemed eager to finally get to the station. Before getting on the bus, he turned and shouted, 'Let's go do it!'"
Shepherd will be the first commander of the space station during the crew's tour of duty, which will last about four months.
On Thursday, November 2, 2000, The spacecraft docked with the station, and Shepherd, Gidzenko and Krikalyov boarded the station to begin their 117-day tour.
After the crew "floated across the threshold of the space station, Shepherd wasted no time radioing a special request to NASA Administrator Dan Goldin at Russia's Mission Control" in Korolev.
"'The first expedition on space station permission to take the radio call sign Alpha,' said Shepherd, the mission's commander. The crew clasped hands in a show of agreement."
"'I think it's a wonderful thing. And not for just today, but I authorize Station Alpha for the entire Expedition One mission,' Goldin said, 'Now you can sleep well at night and not have any concerns.'"
"The crew spent the remainder of Thursday, plus Friday and Saturday (November 3 and 4, 2000) turning on the station's key life-support systems, including, ""activating the station's alarms, its communication equipment and, most importantly perhaps, the toilet," plus "the sleep stations and a laptop computer network."
The crew had Sunday, November 5, 2000, as their day off. Until they become acclimatized to a weightless environment, they will be working short shifts.
"'Once we get into a routine and the crew has established a work ethic--a couple of weeks to maybe a month into their expedition--that (WORK SHIFT) will grow into six-and-a-half hours per day,' said Heff Hanley, NASA's lead flight director for this mission." (See USA Today for November 1, 2000, "Crew on course for space station," page 18A nd the Chicago Tribune for November 4, 2000, "First crew to call station home docks," page 3.)
UNUSUALLY SEVERE STORMS SWEEP WESTERN EUROPE
Autumn storms of unusual size and intensity have caused flooding and devastation across western Europe.
The UK has been hit by the worst flooding since the reign of Henry VIII four hundred years ago. Two storms in a single week "battered the country, which had already been hit by the worst flooding in 50 years. Two people died when a tree fell on their car."
In France, "officials issued a storm warning across the country, forecasting winds of more than 60 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) in many regions. One man was killed by a landslide in the Mediterranean city of Nice."
"In Italy, two people died in floods and mudslides after torrential rains hit the Riviera. Train and road traffic was also disrupted along the coast" in Savoia province.
"In Portugal, the port of Douro in the city of Oporto was closed because of the stormy conditions."
"In Spain. Iberia Airlines cancelled all flights to Galicia and Cantabria (provinces in northern Spain--J.T.) because of 80-mile-per-hour (128 kilometer-per-hour) winds."
"In Ireland, flooding made many roads impassable, and the rail network came to a virtual standstill."
"In Switzerland, deep snow and winds as strong as 159 miles per hour (254 kilometers per hour) moved through the Swiss Alps. In the southern state of Valais, the wind made so much noise that earthquake-measuring equipment falsely indicated that there had been a tremor of magnitude 3.7" on the Richter scale, officials reported. (See USA Today for November 7, 2000, "Storms wreak havoc across western Europe," page 23A.)
from the UFO Files...
1952: CAPTURED BY ALIENS!
One of the most famous UFO contactee cases of the 1950s concerned Truman Bethurum, 54, who was taken aboard a flying saucer in late July of 1952. Here is his story, much of it in his own words.
"In July 1952, while employed on Highway 91, about 70 or 80 miles out of Las Vegas going (north) toward Salt Lake City (i.e. near Ash Springs, Nevada--J.T.) I was transferred from the day shift to swing shift, or night shift would be a better name for it, as we worked from 4 p.m. to sometimes 8 a.m. the next morning. My job was to keep four water trucks operating, hauling water from the Muddy River to two reservoirs out in the desert."
That night, at 3:30 a.m., Truman got permission from his boss to drive out to Mormon Mesa for a quick nap before sunrise. Arriving at the mesa just before 4:30 a.m., he left the engine on his two-and-a-half ton "surplus Army carryall truck" idle, rolled the windows all the way down, turned the dial on the dashboard radio to 1140-AM. And then, listening to Hank Williams sing Honkytonk Blues, he nestled in the seat corner and closed his eyes, "realizing the first gleam of daylight would awake me."
"I had been asleep possibly a half hour or slightly more when" his eyes blinked open. The truck engine was silent. Truman's first groggy thought was, What happened to Hank?
Sitting up, he was fully "awakened by what would best be described as a mumbling, low talking in an unintelligible tongue."
"My first thought was that my boss and someone were a trick because of finding me asleep, but as I raised my head, I quickly discovered that this was not the case."
"About eight small-sized men were in a semicircle in front and to the right side of my truck, approximately eight to ten feet away, and apparently as curious as I was."
"My thought was to get away fast, although I would have to back around. As I raised up to see better, one of the men took a couple of steps toward me and said something rather low and still unintelligible to me. I shook my head to indicate to him that I did not understand, and he quickly came back with this answer, 'You name it?'
(Editor's Comment: A garbled version of "What is your name?" perhaps?)
"I said, 'My God, you can speak English, too?'"
"He said in return, 'We have no difficulty with any language.'"
"These fellows seemed to be of Latin (Hispanic) extraction from their appearance. My heart was thumping. I guess both from fear and excitement. At that instant, I decided to get out of my truck and shake hands for a friendly gesture. As I turned to get out, I saw about 15 yards away a monstrous disc-shaped flying saucer."
"Then I wondered if this could be a movie prop but as I had been above (the canyon--J.T.) looking down only a short time before, I realized that this could not be the case."
"As I reached out my hand to shake hands, it seemed like a military maneuver the way they lined up as each seemed anxious to grasp my hand. Only one made any attempt to talk to me or to answer my questions. They never asked me a single question, as it appeared to me to be a military-type outfit they were wearing, and also the way they fell into line to shake my hand (almost grabbing it each time--T.B.) I said to this man, 'Do you have a captain?'"
"He said, 'Sure.'"
"Then I said, "Could I speak to him, please?'"
"He said, 'Surest thing you know.'"
"He took ahold of my right arm above the elbow with his left hand with a terribly hard squeeze (that did not ease my mind any--T.B.) Then I asked if they were from some European country."
"He said, 'No, our homes are in a faraway land.'"
"As I had asked about speaking to their captain, I noticed a smile on some faces, 'Well, this is it, and no one will ever know what happened to me.' He said, 'You may speak to our captain in our Scero.'"
(Editor's Note: Pronounced Skeh-roe.)
"I thought what a name for a thing like that. This man almost spun me around and started for the saucer, which seemed to be floating about four feet (1.3 meters) off the ground, and as we neared it, it settled to I would say just inches off the ground, and tilted down on the near side at the same time. There was just one step and a single hand rail on the right side of the opening. He almost bounced me to the rim of the saucer. He had released the extreme pressure on my arm, but still had a firm grip. I am at least a foot taller than he was and I weight approximately 180 (pounds)."
"We went downhill inside about 50 feet, and he again swung me around to the left, through a doorlike opening to a room about 10 by 12 feet (3 to 4 meters) fitted like a combined office and lounge. I think my eyes fairly popped as I saw their captain was a gorgeous woman, shorter than any of the men, neatly attired, and also having a Latin appearance, coal-black hair and olive complexion. She appeared to me to be about 42 years old."
"She stood up and smiled, and the man released my arm immediately. I turned to say something to him, but he had disappeared instantly. As I again faced the lady, I could not for the life of me think of a single thing to say. After a couple of seconds, she again smiled and said, 'Speak up, friend. You're not hexed.'"
"After talking and asking questions for about a half hour, I realized they were definitely not Europeans. She did not tell me her name or the name of their planet at that time, just leaving me with the knowledge that they traveled interplanetary and were wise to everything going on al over our world, and other planets also. She seemed friendly, anxious to talk, etc. About the only question she asked of me was what I called the area, which was Mormon Mesa, Nevada. She later told me her name was Aura Rhanes and the planet was Clarion. She said Clarion was definitely not a planet known by some other name and gave me her reasons." (See the book Flying Saucers Have Landed! edited by Jay David, World Publishing Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, 1970, pages 94 through 98, "I was Inside a Flying Saucer" by Truman Bethurum.)
As I write this on Wednesday afternoon, there is still no final decision in the USA presidential election. We are now in the midst of the biggest political cliffhanger in American history. More on that next week, when we return with more UFO and paranormal news from around the planet Earth, brought to you by "the paper that goes home--UFO Roundup." See you then!
