SUBJECT: CANADIAN UFO WAVE 1989, FROM IUR FILE: UFO1426 The following is from: IUR - International UFO Reporter - Nov./Dec. 1989 Vol. 14, Number 6 p 7-9. ******************************** THE CANADIAN UFO WAVE OF 1989 by Chris Rutkowski part 2 The sighting that received the most attention in the Winnepeg area began at about 11:15 p.m., on October 9, and ended over two hours later. Carl Weselak a self-described `volunteer astronomer,' decided that he would observe a meteor shower from his third-floor apartment window in downtown Winnipeg. Almost im- mediately, he saw a large `boomerang-shaped' object flying north to south over the city. He was keeping accurate time for his meteor observing, and therefore knew this occured at 11:30 p.m. exactly. Its angular size was thought to be a- bout 1/8-inch at arm's length. Over the next few hours, other UFOs were seen, ranging from balls of light to the now-familiar boomerang. He was sure that none were aircraft, but were indeed extraterrestrial spacecraft. The case received publicity because as he watched the objects, he telephoned a newspaper to have a reporter verify the sightings. A major article appeared a few days later, after reporters had interviewed Weselak and received comments from planetarium representatives. Investigation by UFOROM showed that the air- port had never been called regarding flight plans of aircraft about the time of the sightings. It turns out that several landings and take-offs over Winnipeg corresponded to the minute with Wesalak observations. (This does not mean, how- ever, that the sightings are fully explained in this manner, and both UFOROM and the planetarium are still checking further with airport officials regarding cer- tain details.) This was enough to spark a local media furor about UFOs. Several more sight- ings were reported throughout the week to media and investigators. But unknown to Winnipeg residents, the wave had moved westward. The same night as Carl Wes- elak's multiple sightings, two radio announcers in Dawson Creek, British Colum- bia, were alerted to some lights in the night sky. They wnet and watched an ob- ject that `did not seem to be an airplane' move silently in the night sky. On October 11, at 7:30 p.m., a group of five elementary school children skateboarding in Langenburg, Saskatchewan, suddenly saw an arrangement of col- ored lights moving toward them across a field. One boy told reporters, `It sort of came down when it saw us. It seemed to come to a stop, and then it took off.' The five boys instinctively ducked down in some tall grass because they feared they would be `abducted.' When the object moved off, they went to tell two of their teachers in the schoolyard. Together, they all watched the object for another 10 or 15 minutes. One of the teachers said that the object had a `bright flashing light on top and a red light on the bottom.' It appeared to him to be over a kilometer away, but only 200 meters in altitude. The top light appeared to flash on and off every 15 to 20 seconds. That same night, Edwin Fuhr had his second UFO sighting in 15 years when he too saw `colored lights in the sky.' And in Winnipeg about 400 km away, a shift worker was returning home through a park at about 12:20 a.m. when he saw a `shimmering boomerang' in the sky. He went closer, and he heard a high pitched whine coming from its direction. As he walked closer, it started to move slowly then shot away making a noise like a `sonic boom.' The sighting that drew the most attention in Saskatchewan occured on Octo- ber 13. At 10:00 a.m. Rose Neumeier was in her kitchen talking on the telephone and blankly looking out a window. A flash of light drew her attention toward a shed about 15 meters from the farmhouse. An object `like two pie plates rim to rim' was motionless in the air only about 15 meters above the shed. It appeared nine meters long and three meters thick, with a flattened top and a `corrugated' bottom. It was shiny and metallic, and light was shining brightly from the `joint' between the two halves. It made no noise and animals were not disturb- ed. After a few minutes, the object `rose in slow motion. It went north of the yard, curved through the hayfield, then circled over the barn and went back a- cross the pasture.' Three days later a woman was driving near Langruth, Manitoba, at about 7:45 a.m., when she saw a `star with a tail of smoke going up' in the eastern sky. After a few minutes the object took on the appearance of a `dome shape,' and its tail was no longer visible. Twelve hours later, a man in Langenburg was driving with his daughter when they observed an object in the night sky. The object was `as wide as a small airplane is long,' with colored flashing lights. As they watched, it coasted over the highway `right over our heads,' It made no sound and they were both mystified. The sighting spurred the man to watch the sky every night after that, and he made several additional reports during the rest of the month. According to RCMP, a `reliable' resident of Gilbert Plaines, Manitoba, ob- served a large object with red flashing lights on October 25 at 7:45 p.m. It moved slowly and silently at an estimated altitude of 60 meters and did not ap- pear to be an aircraft. Finally, the last case of the major wave was called in to UFOROM on Novem- ber 1. At 6:60 p.m., a pilot flying a small plane 20 miles north of LaRonge, Saskatchewan, reported seeing a pair of blinking lights moving across his path at an altitude of 8500 feet. Air Traffic Control confirmed that there were no other aircraft known in the area at the time. The geographical spread of the reports throughout the wave is very inter- esting. Sightings were made hundreds of kilometers apart within a matter of hours or days of each other, without any way for the witnesses to know of the other cases. This in itself is unusual, though there may be a number of con- tributing elements. First, the Soviet media circus probably raised people's awareness of UFOs. Second, a little known meteor shower (Draconids) peaked on October 9-10, and it is possible that some of the sightings could be traceable to this cause. Yet, a better known meteor shower peaked on October 21 (Orionids), and this did not precipitate any reports. Another possible explanation that should be mentioned is the TST (Tectonic Strain Theory of UFOs). This theory attempts to link UFOs and the release of seismic energy, and good correlations have been claimed, though disputed. The San Francisco earthquake occured on October 17, admittedly during the 1989 wave. It has been suggested that the wave was an indication of pending seismic re- lease, but how and why the energy manifested itself over 1500 kilometers from earthquake epicenter are questions that need answering before the two can be considered related through anything other than coincidence. Finally, the Canadian wave had counterparts throughout North America, and it will be interesting to assess the full scope of UFO phenomena observed dur- ing the fall of 1989. Ufologists will have plenty new data to study in the com- ing years. As usual, many of the reports appear likely to have conventional ex- planations, while still others require more information for analysis. A few do not seem to have simple explanations, and those will be examined in the months ahead. Investigators and researchers are encouraged to share their case reports with each other for a better understanding of the wave. And debunkers are in- vited to submit their comments and case investigations to add to the analyses. Even if the UFOs all have conventional explanations, the wave is at least in- teresting to sociologists, to understand the mechanisms of its formation, and the reasons people across two nations suddenly began reporting UFOs again. ********************************************** * THE U.F.O. BBS - http://www.ufobbs.com/ufo * **********************************************