The article below was published in the daily newspaper Le Courrier de Saône-et-Loire, France, pages 1 and 4, on September 30, 1954.
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LYON. -- In the departments of Rhône, Isère, Drôme, and Savoie, many people claim to have seen, in recent days and with varying clarity, craft in either cigar or disc shapes.
In the Arbresle region, one of these witnesses — a Paris music hall director — even filmed one of these mysterious craft, which he estimated to be flying at about 700 meters in altitude. It will be known after the film is developed whether or not it was an optical illusion.
Near Feyzin (Isère), a young man reportedly saw a dome-shaped craft in the countryside, not far from the ground, emitting a very bright light. The witness compared it to the brightness caused by burning magnesium. Suddenly, the craft shot up vertically, leaving a trail of sparks behind, and disappeared.
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In the Drôme, a resident of Valence, Mrs. L..., who was walking near Chabeuil, claims to have encountered on the path she was following a small being dressed so strangely that she initially thought it was a scarecrow made of cellophane. The dog accompanying the woman barked furiously, seized with terror. As for Mrs. L..., equally terrified, she hid behind a hedge.
It was then that she saw a disc rise from the cornfield bordering the path, emitting a whistling sound. Shortly after, the witness and some farmers went to the field where, according to them, a circular trace about 3 meters in diameter was clearly visible, with flattened corn stalks and broken branches around the edge.
Other residents of Chabeuil also stated they had seen a flying saucer in the sky over the countryside that day.
Finally, in Savoie, near Lake Bourget, above Mount Revard, several motorists — around fifteen people in total — simultaneously saw a disc-shaped object move around for about four minutes, then disappear suddenly.
One of the witnesses, a doctor from Chambéry, is a former artillery observer. He carefully recorded his observations and drew a diagram showing the path of the mysterious object.
STOCKHOLM. -- A luminous sphere, leaving a trail of fire behind it, was photographed last night in Bjuv, in southeastern Sweden. The object, which was moving northward, according to the witness, was flying rapidly, "as high," he said, "as a jet plane, but without making any noise."
At the Lund Observatory, it was stated that no meteor had been observed at the time the witness photographed the phenomenon using a telephoto lens.
PERPIGNAN. -- A baker from Canet-Plage, Mr. Etienne Err, stated that while returning from a delivery round in his van, he saw above that locality a bright disc which, after making wide circles, moved off toward the sea.
Additionally, seven workers from a factory on the outskirts of Perpignan claim to have also seen an object of an indeterminate color, moving at high speed and said to have crossed the Pyrenees heading toward Spain.
Three residents of Lanta, near Villefranche-de-Lauraguais (Haute-Garonne), Mr. and Mrs. Brunet and Mr. Larga, a local schoolteacher, claim to have seen last night, above the village, a luminous orange disc.
The object was flying at high altitude and was moving in a north-to-south direction.
After being visible for thirty to forty seconds, the luminous disc disappeared on the horizon.
CHATELLERAULT. -- Mr. Yves David, 28 years old, a farmer in Les Brouloux, in the commune of Vouneuil-sur-Vienne (Vienne), stated that on September 19th, at 10 p.m., he saw a sort of "diver" approaching him on the road from Cenon to Vouneuil.
The being, he said, came up and touched his arm, emitted unintelligible sounds, and retreated toward a craft (which Mr. David could not describe). A green beam of light was projected in his direction, pinning him in place, then the craft disappeared vertically into the sky without any noise. Mr. David said he initially didn't want to mention this strange encounter for fear of being ridiculed. However, he told a friend, asking if anyone else had seen the "diver." That is how the entire village found out.
