On October 13, 2000 at approximately 7:30 PM a group of lights streaked across the Midwest, appearing first over northwest Texas, and ultimately being sighted from Oklahoma to Nebraska and as far east as Illinois.
On October 18, NASA issued a statement that the objects were the remains of a Russian Proton rocket that had been fired earlier that day had re-entered the atmosphere and broken up. In an unexpected development, US Space Command and the North American Aerospace Defense Command both said that no such object had entered the atmosphere at that time.
Then, on October 29, NASA announced that the remains of the rocket had been found on a farm near LaCrosse, Kansas. This appeared to close the case, as Whitleysworld reported on October 30.
However, there has been a spectacular rash of UFO sightings in Texas and Oklahoma since the event, and it now seems possible that the Proton rocket was not the only thing that came down to earth on our about October 13.
A Whitleysworld reader offered the following eyewitness description of the event: “It appeared to be a cluster of more than a dozen objects entering the atmosphere, some strung out for about 25 degrees along their trajectory, but most in a tighter, lead cluster. Each burned as a white hot point, and each was followed by a brilliant trail. Thetrails varied somewhat in color, but all were of a bright, stark, whitish,fluorescent quality.”
Eyewitness Arthur Davis of Valley Center, Kansas, also described something that did not appear to be the same as the incoming rocket. “There was one big light and around it five little balls, just lights, just following them. And then through the sky there was just like vapors, and vapors like different colors–blues and oranges.”
Beginning in late October, a series of UFO sightings were reported across central and north Texas. On October 26, an amateur astronomer in Woodlands, Texas, reported a V-shaped formation of round white lights on the underside of a solid V-shaped fuselage, which shimmered like a mirage and appeared to be transparent. The lights pulsed slowly at one-second intervals. The estimated altitude was 2,000 to 5,000 feet, and the object was traveling at fantastic speed. Thanks to Filers Files.
On the night of October 27, a young woman traveling north toward San Antonio from Corpus Christi, Texas observed an object that appeared to be targeting her car. It displayed a white light and “red flashes” along the side. It came very close to the car. The witness reported seeing the object again on her return to Corpus Christi. Thanks to UFO Roundup.
On October 30, also in San Antonio, two witnesses noticed blue and red flashing lights in the sky at 11:30PM. When observed through binoculars, a round white light was seen with flashing blue lights on one side and red on the other. A few moments later, the flashing lights were gone, and there was only a red light on top of the object. Thanks to NUFORC.
On October 28, Jim Hickman had the first of what has become a series of unusual sightings. Mr. Hickman is the editor of the Hickman Report. He was monitoring police radio frequencies when he picked up a report of an object crashing near Elk City, Oklahoma. This was followed by a report of a number of fighters traveling to the northwest. It was later concluded that the Elk City report actually involved the crash of the Proton rocket, the remains of which were recovered 200 miles to the north near La Crosse Kansas.
The previous October 19, near Elk City, a farm family had observed a UFO move over their house at low altitude. This object was gray in color and had red, white and blue lights, and came in slowly at a very low altitude, perhaps only a hundred and fifty feet. They believed that the object must have been at least a mile long. The object has continued to be seen in the Elk City area.
On November 12, a Dreamland listener in Tulsa reported that the entire southern sky had lit up at precisely 1:15AM. He counted over fifty flashes of orange light (the sky was overcast) so bright that it left images on his retinas. He reported near-panic among some witnesses. “There was even a woman screaming and crying.” There were numerous 911 calls.
The witness further reported that there have been numerous unexplained booms in the area, and an increase in traffic by unmarked military helicopters.
On November 16, Jim Hickman reported that the Elk City witness, who wishes to remain anonymous, contacted him again on November 14, stating that the object had reappeared. Hickman immediately went outside with binoculars, and observed a very bright white light moving from the southeast to the southwest, approximately 20 degrees above the horizon. There were three white lights and one flashing red. A beam of white light was aimed at the ground.
Hickman immediately proceeded to the area where the object should have been, which was approximately 2 miles from his location. (This was relatively easy to determine as he and the other witness were observing it at the same time.) When he arrived in the area, the object had moved some miles away, but could still be seen as a dull orange light. It moved southwest until it disappeared over the horizon.
On November 15, military helicopters were observed in the area. There were sightings of a similar object reported near the towns of Foss, Canute and Clinton Lake, Oklahoma.
Hickman reports that there were similar sightings near the Clinton/Sherman air force base in Clinton lake on February 26, 1998.
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