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ALSACAT:

ALSACAT is my comprehensive catalog of UFO sighting reports in Alsace, the region is the North-East of France, whether they are "explained" or "unexplained".

The ALSACAT catalog is made of case files with a case number, summary, quantitative information (date, location, number of witnesses...), classifications, all sources mentioning the case with their references, a discussion of the case in order to evaluate its causes, and a history of the changes made to the file. A general index and thematic sub-catalogs give access to these Alsatian case files.

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Case of Metzeral, on March 2, 1981:

Case number:

ALSACAT-1981-03-02-METZERAL-1

Summary:

The regional newspaper L'Alsace for March 4, 1981, reported that Catherine Dupond, 12, living in Blotzheim, told them that on vacation at her grandmother's in Metzreal, she had seen "Monday evening", therefore March 2, 1981, between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m., with her cousin Annick Baumann, 13, a "light" who was moving in the mountains. She told to the newspaper:

"It was big, a bit like the headlight of a car and was blinking."

The newspaper tells that when she told them this over the phone on the morning of March 3, 1981, the young girl had sensed their skepticism, and had assured them:

"I have a lot of imagination but I was very scared all the same."

The newspaper specified that at that hour it could not have been the "Air Alsace" plane which always turns over the valley of Munster before landing in Colmar, because it did not come until 10:30 p.m. that Monday, and maybe it was really a UFO. The newspaper called for witnesses, apparently to no avail.

Data:

Temporal data:

Date: March 2, 1981
Time: 09:30 p.m.
Duration: ?
First known report date: March 3, 1981
Reporting delay: 1 day.

Geographical data:

Department: Haut-Rhin
City: Metzeral
Place: ?
Latitude: 48.012
Longitude: 7.071
Uncertainty radius: 2 km.

Witnesses data:

Number of alleged witnesses: 2
Number of known witnesses: 1
Number of named witnesses: 2
Witness(es) ages: 12, 13
Witness(es) types: Young girls.

Ufology data:

Reporting channel: By phone to the regional newspaper L'Alsace.
Type of location: Mountain, forest.
Visibility conditions: Night.
UFO observed: Yes
UFO arrival observed: ?
UFO departure observed: ?
Entities: No
Photographs: No.
Sketch(s) by witness(es): No.
Sketch(es) approved by witness(es): No.
Witness(es) feelings: Frightened.
Witnesses interpretation: ?

Classifications:

Hynek: NL
ALSACAT: Possible misinterpretation.

Sources:

[Ref. lae1:] NEWSPAPER "L'ALSACE":

Scan.

A "light"
in the mountain

Her name is Catherine Dupond, she lives in Blotzheim, and has the certainties of her 12 years. On vacation at her grandmother's in Metzeral, she saw Monday evening, between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. with her cousin Annick Baumann (an "old" 13 years old) a "light" that was moving in the mountains. "It was big, like the headlight of a car and was blinking."

When she told us about her adventure on the phone yesterday morning, Catherine sensed our skepticism.

"I have a lot of imagination but I was very scared all the same."

And as at this time it could not have been the "Air Alsace" plane which is always circling over the valley of Munster before landing in Colmar, (it only arrived at 10:30 p.m. Monday), maybe it really is a UFO. If other people have observed the phenomenon, they can contact our editorial staff in Colmar at 41 35 07.

Discussion:

Map.

Obviously, it is impossible to show that the girls saw an extraterrestrial craft. When Catherine says that the light was "a bit like the headlight of a car", she perhaps gives a solution, that of a motorcycle or car headlights, the blinking can be explained by a viewing behind a curtain of trees.

The information given by the newspaper is far too meager to go further than that...

Evaluation:

Possible misinterpretation.

Sources references:

* = Source is available to me.
? = Source I am told about but could not get so far. Help needed.

File history:

Authoring:

Main author: Patrick Gross
Contributors: None
Reviewers: None
Editor: Patrick Gross

Changes history:

Version: Create/changed by: Date: Description:
0.1 Patrick Gross July 1, 2021 Creation, [lae1].
1.0 Patrick Gross July 1, 2021 First published.

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This page was last updated on July 1, 2021.