The article below was published in the daily newspaper Clarion-Ledger, of Jackson, Mississippi, USA, on December 2, 1988.
Lucedale: Unidentified flying objects - definitely not 'American-made stuff,' according to one witness - attempted to land in George County this week and were reported by about eight rural residents. Deland Blackston, 27, of Basin told George County deputy Clyde Morris that two large flying objects decorated in red, green, and blue lights were spotted near his home around 8 p.m. Tuesday. "I know it wasn't American-made stuff," Blackston said. "It about the size of a house, but I can't tell you the shape. It was real quick." Blackston said he saw the UFO for only a minute or less. He said the objects made no sound. He and seven other Basin neighbors were talking near a county road about 12 miles south of Lucedale when they noticed the unusual sight in an open grazing field about 300 yards away. Witnesses said the objects moved toward the ground and suddenly turned back, heading toward nearby woods where they disappeared.
"I freaked out and started running and reported it," Blackston said. No breaks have surfaced in the sheriff department's investigation of the UFO sighting, officials said Thursday. Sue Lucius, the sheriff's night dispatcher, said Blackston's telephone call on behalf of the eight witnesses was the only UFO sighting reported Tuesday, though several others called Wednesday "because they had heard about it and were scared."
