The article below was published in the daily newspaper L'Indépendant, Perpignan, France, on October 16, 1954.
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PERPIGNAN. -- Until yesterday, we had not been given any definite testimony of the passage of "flying saucers" in the Perpignan region. However, yesterday we learned that a resident of the St-Assiscle district, a man who appears perfectly balanced and trustworthy, Mr. Damien Figuères, a 56-year-old retired customs officer living at 27 rue de la Garrigole, stated that on Thursday evening, around 7:30 p.m., he saw on the road, near the swimming pool campsite, at the intersection leading to the Prades road, a large red sphere.
From it, after it landed in the middle of the road, emerged a tall man dressed like a diver. After walking around his craft, he hurried back inside upon seeing the two dogs of Mr. Figuères approaching. Taking off without making the slightest noise or emitting any flame, the craft disappeared into the sky with prodigious speed.
Mr. Figuères, who was about thirty meters from the sphere, rushed home, 150 meters from the landing site, alerted his son-in-law, Mr. Lissoni, a driver employed by Mr. Dot, a shipper, and the two returned to the scene, but they found no trace, either on the ground or even on the electrical or telephone wires surrounding the crossroads, forming a square through which the craft must have passed.
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[Photo caption:] Mr. Damien Figueres points out to our photographer the exact spot where, he claims, he saw the mysterious craft land. Mr. Figuères was standing at the place occupied in our photo by a cyclist.
(Photo R. P. Indépendant).
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As Mr. Figuères told us yesterday afternoon, "These facts seem strange, but I assure you that I was quite frightened and that for 30 seconds to 1 minute, I was stunned by the sight of this red sphere which made no noise, landed and took off again without emitting the slightest flame.
"I am ready to certify that I was not the victim of a hallucination, and the barking of my large wolf-dog is for me sufficient proof that it was a strange phenomenon and one that I had never seen."
Strange lights above Calmeilles in the Pyrénées-Orientales
PERPIGNAN. -- In Calmeilles (Pyrénées-Orientales), near Céret, around 10 o’clock, several people saw strange lights crossing the sky, moving from north to south. These lights illuminated the valley for a few moments, then disappeared.
AVIGNON. -- At the beginning of Thursday afternoon, at 1:30 p.m., the population of Fontaine-de-Vaucluse was in a state of excitement. Indeed, a "white disc" was slowly hovering above the small town and could be clearly seen with good binoculars. This white disc was topped with a spherical dome of the same color.
The lower circular edge intermittently displayed two powerful lights, varying from white to purplish, passing through red.
The Caritat base (Vaucluse), alerted, immediately dispatched two jet aircraft, which soon appeared over Fontaine-de-Vaucluse.
Here, two versions emerge: that of the population and that of the Secretariat of the Armed Forces.
According to the population, the two jet aircraft from the Orange base dived toward the "disc," and it was seen to shoot away like an arrow, pursued in vain by the two planes.
On the other hand, the State Secretariat for the Armed Forces (Air) specifies that the two pilots from the Orange base who flew at different altitudes over Fontaine-de-Vaucluse on the afternoon of October 14 observed no unknown craft during their search. The two pilots are experienced officers, and their report is categorical.
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MULHOUSE. -- A sales representative driving on Thursday evening, accompanied by a friend, between Niffer and Kembs, suddenly saw in the sky a luminous craft in the form of an ovoid fireball. According to the representative, it traced a large "S" in the sky, moving at a vertiginous speed and at an altitude of about 300 meters. The craft, which was preceded by a long luminous trail, changed color from orange to white, then headed toward the southeast.
