Source: UFO Chile (newsletter) Issues 6 and 7 combined
Date: May 1969, Santiago de Chile
CHILEAN CASES FROM 1969.
January 5 at 4:00 a.m., Viña del Mar. — Carabineros on duty at the Cerro
Castillo Presidential Palace saw an incandescent object fall into the sea and
settle in the water. Immediately after the incident was reported, a patrol boat
headed to the location, finding the water boiling, a strong smell of sulfur,
and plant matter possibly originating from the seabed. Several subsequent dives
yielded no results. The Montemar Institute of Marine Biology analyzed the plant
matter found, stating that it did not consist of seaweed but rather plants that
grow in the estuary and had been washed out to sea. The sulfurous odor was
attributed to the fact that the vegetation was decomposing. Furthermore, we
learned via Radio Portales that a local research group had located the
individuals who launched a paper balloon—which likely corresponded to the
object seen descending into the sea.
January 14 (or shortly before), 9:00 PM – Cerro Quiñe (Linares Province).
Numerous people observed an object resembling a balloon that emitted
multicolored lights and maneuvered at high speed in front of Cerro Quiñe.
(Source: *La Prensa* of Parral, January 15).
January 19, near Socos (Coquimbo Province, WSW of Ovalle), at 3:00 AM. Two
taxi drivers from Ovalle, returning from Guanaqueros, observed two UFOs moving
at high speed and low altitude—leaving a luminous trail—upon arriving in Socos
(30°40' S, 71°30' W). They stopped their car and turned off the headlights to
get a better look. (Source: *El Limarí* of Ovalle, January 21).
January 31, 9:30 AM. Ovalle – Construction workers at a hospital site and
several local residents observed a strange circular object descending rapidly,
only to rise again. It maneuvered for five minutes, repeating this action
several times before disappearing into the cloud cover present at the time. The
morning was unusually cloudy. (Source: *El Diario de Ovalle*). February 1st.
February 2nd. 4:40 AM, Las Trancas (Ñuble Province, near the Chillán Hot
Springs). A Santiago newspaper linked this incident to UFOs, claiming witnesses
saw a fireball rise after being awakened by a noise and finding their cars
repositioned and dented, despite having left the electrical circuits
disconnected. In response to a letter from UFO-Chile, the witnesses denied the
part of the story regarding the fireball; therefore, we are not providing
further details on the case—which was strange in any event, but had no evident
connection to our subject. (The exact account appeared in the Chillán newspaper
*La Discusión* on February 5th).
February 12th, 5:00 PM, 4 miles off the coast, opposite Quintero
(Valparaíso Province). We will not provide many details on this case for the
time being, due to conflicting accounts. The crew of the fishing boat *Carol*
spotted a strange object over the sea, which reportedly split apart and
vanished (or sank into the water). A Grumman aircraft was maneuvering near it;
however, the Air Force has denied the presence of such aircraft in the area.
(Numerous press reports).
March 6th, 9:45 PM, 5 km from the Manantiales Camp (Magallanes Province).
"PUNTA ARENAS."—An occupant of a flying saucer allegedly left a
mark on a vehicle belonging to an official from the National Petroleum Company
(ENAP). This strange account was released by Osvaldo Domínguez, the head of the
Manantiales Camp in Tierra del Fuego. Domínguez stated that the incident
occurred on March 6th, around... At 9:45 PM, while about 5 kilometers from the
location, his pickup truck's ignition failed. He got out to inspect the battery
when, about 6 meters from his vehicle, he saw a flying saucer hovering in
mid-air. He estimated its diameter at approximately 4 meters. The strange
object appeared to be made of aluminum.
Domínguez later stated that it was dark. Startled, he grabbed the handle of
his vehicle. Suddenly, he saw the vehicle's door open and two shadowy figures
step down onto the road. "I couldn't tell if they were human... They were
two shadows. One of them advanced toward my vehicle; I asked what they wanted,
but they didn't answer."
He later reported that the shadows were approximately 1.60 meters tall. One
of them leaned against the left side and left a mark. It consists of three
small lines resembling cat scratches, and they are white in color. They are
still visible. "After they had been on the ground for a few moments,"
he said, "I didn't even see them get in. They simply arrived..."reportedly
split apart and vanished (or sank into the water). A Grumman aircraft was maneuvering near
it; however, the Air Force has denied the presence of such aircraft in the area. (Numerous press reports).
March 6th, 9:45 PM, 5 km from the Manantiales Camp (Magallanes Province).
"PUNTA ARENAS."—An occupant of a flying saucer allegedly left a mark
on a vehicle belonging to an official from the National Petroleum Company
(ENAP). This strange account was released by
Osvaldo Domínguez, the head of the Manantiales Camp in Tierra del Fuego. Domínguez stated that the incident
occurred on March 6th, around... At 9:45 PM, while about 5 kilometers from
the location, his pickup truck's ignition failed. He got out to inspect the battery when,
about 6 meters from his vehicle, he saw a flying saucer hovering in mid-air. He estimated its diameter at approximately
4 meters. The strange object appeared to be made of
aluminum.
Domínguez later stated that it was dark. Startled, he grabbed the handle of his
vehicle. Suddenly, he saw the vehicle's door open
and two shadowy figures step down onto the road. "I couldn't tell if they were
human... They were two shadows. One of them advanced toward my vehicle; I asked
what they wanted, but they didn't answer."
He later reported that the shadows were approximately 1.60 meters tall. One of
them leaned against the left side and left a mark. It consists of three small lines
resembling cat scratches, and they are white in color. They are still visible. "After they had been on the ground
for a few moments," he said, "I didn't even see them get in. They
simply arrived..."
The UFO remained next to the Calama Municipality vehicle for
approximately 10 minutes. Then, according to architect Contreras himself, the
object ascended into the sky. However, before disappearing, the UFO transformed
into a "cluster" of lights of various colors.
The architect himself dismissed the possibility that it was
a radiosonde; as such devices do not ascend into the sky after descending.
This is not the first UFO sighted in the El Loa Department.
Last year, a family also observed a luminous object that followed their car as
they were heading to the Calama airport. (Sources: *La Estrella del Norte* of Antofagasta, March 19; *El Mercurio*
of Calama, March 20; and *La Estrella de Iquique*, March 20).
March 31: False alarm. According to *El Tarapacá* of Iquique
(April 11 issue), a shining object was spotted on the slopes of "El
Dragón" hill. A military jeep was sent to investigate, and it was
discovered to be a truck wheel.
Mid-April, about 6 km from Pichidangui (i.e., approx. 32°13'
S and 71°32' W). According to the Ovalle newspaper *La Provincia* (April 17
issue), several nights earlier, two traveling salespeople were driving a pickup
truck from La Calera toward Ovalle. Shortly before reaching Pichidangui—around
11:00 PM—a blinding light suddenly illuminated the road, first with a sort of
luminous explosion that was violet and then white. The pickup truck... ...it
came to a halt, and the driver and his passenger were left paralyzed, unable to
move for roughly a minute, until the dim light returned and they could see a
luminous, mushroom-shaped object—its form blurred by the flashes it
emitted—rising at high speed. Astonishment and terror were etched on their
faces when they arrived in Ovalle. They recount that they could not explain why
the pickup truck had stopped, as it started up again immediately upon the first
attempt to get it moving.
April 13–14, 9:00 PM, near Cullón (Magallanes Province,
Tierra del Fuego).—Antonio Damianovic, a well-known merchant from Magallanes
and a former athlete, observed an object resembling a full moon—white with pink
lights—moving vertically and then horizontally before suddenly disappearing
upwards. His daughter, son-in-law, and a shepherd were also with him. The
sighting recurred the following day at the same time, lasting 30 minutes and
involving similar movements and positions, though the object vanished in just 5
seconds.
