1973: Lyndia Morel Encounter

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THINK ABOUTIT UFO REPORT

Date: November 2, 1973

Sighting Time: 4:00 am

Day/Night: Night

Location: Manchester, New Hampshire

Urban or Rural: Rural

Hynek Classification: CE-III (Close Encounter III) Close observation with animate beings associated with the object.

Duration:

No. of Object(s): Single

Size of Object(s): 30? feet

Distance to Object(s): 500 feet

Shape of Object(s): Globe

Color of Object(s): orange and gold

Number of Witnesses: Single

Special Features: Humanoid/Occupant

Source: Walter Webb, APRO Bulletin, Vol. 12 No. 4 (Jan/Feb 1974)

Summary: Excerpt: “As the car approached a point opposite the middle of the cemetery the UFO closed possibly to within less than 500 feet… At this point she estimated the object to be at the height of a three-story building. The figure in the window was now distinct.

Full Report

Brian James, APRO staff artist, worked with Mr. Webb and the witness to execute the artwork above.

Detail of occupant based on witness sketch.

The following information is condensed from the very detailed and excellent report submitted by Mr. Walter Webb, one of APRO’s Consultants in Astronomy, as well as that of Mrs. Betty Hill, F.I. in New Hampshire.

At 2:45 a.m. on Friday morning, November 2, 1973, Mrs. Lyndia Morel signed out at the Swedish Sauna in Manchester, New Hampshire where she is employed as a masseuse. She then proceeded south in her 1964 Chevrolet Corvair, arriving at Ben Roy’s Restaurant on South Willow Street in Manchester, about 10 minutes later, where she had two cups of coffee with a friend from work. After approximately 45 minutes, she and her friend left the restaurant and parted company. Mrs. Morel drove across the street to a gas station and purchased two dollars worth of gas. This episode, according to Mrs. Morel may have taken about 10 minutes.

After crossing the Merrimack River via Queen City Bridge, Mrs. Morel proceeded northwest on Mast Road (Route 114A). As she passed the Bi-Wise Supermarket in Pinardville (outskirts of Manchester), her attention was attracted to a large, bright, yellow light in the sky to her left and ahead of her. Resembling a bright star, the object flashed red, green and blue colors. In fact, the witness couldn’t tell at this point if it was moving and thought the object was a planet. Mrs. Morel also was aware of another bright yellowish “star” to the left of the object which undoubtedly was the planet Mars. The UFO was brighter and yellower than the other object.

The witness continued to drive at what she believed was an average speed of about 30 miles per hour although she had no way of checking her speed since the speedometer was broken and disconnected. After traveling about a mile, Mrs. Morel said she looked at the object and saw that it was still in the same position but seemed to be brighter.

Approaching the intersection of Routes 114A and 114, the woman lit a cigarette and at that moment, as she looked at the object, its light went out. Thinking that was peculiar for a planet, she entertained the idea for the first time that the object might be a UFO. However, she was not apprehensive and after passing the intersection the light reappeared in the same spot to the left and ahead of the car.

The road was dark but up ahead on the right Mrs. Morel said she could see the lights of the Hillsborough County Nursing Home (the so-called “county farm”) and across the road on the left, the lights of Moore General Hospital. As her car approached the farm, the object’s light went out again. Immediately after this disappearance, a couple of cars traveling toward Manchester passed by in the eastbound lane. The witness recalled seeing no other traffic in either lane throughout the rest of the sighting, at least not until after her arrival at the Beaudoin house.

About a half mile from the nursing home, near the Boston and Maine Railroad crossing, the light came back on again, perhaps at an even brighter level. For another two miles the strange object maintained the same appearance and relationship to the Morel car as before.

On the outskirts of Goffstown (population 1050) about where the town’s street lights began, the UFO’s light vanished once more and after about .7 mile (mileage intervals from Mr. Webb’s speedometer) reappeared for perhaps 15 seconds, according to Mrs. Morel. But as she veered right around a corner into downtown Goffstown, the light went out and remained out during the drive of .3 mile through the lighted downtown area.

Veering left at the intersection of Routes 114 and 13 (near a popcorn stand) the witness said she was astounded to see the light dead ahead down North Mast Road (Route 114). The object appeared larger, quite a bit closer, and lower than before and positioned as if waiting for the observer. Mr. Webb had Mrs. Morel indicate the UFO’s position and apparent distance and size. His estimate of the elevation/ true azimuth was 5°/287-290°. Although she could not really judge how far away or how large the object was the witness pointed out a landmark near where she thought the object might have been, and that was determined by speedometer check to be 1600 feet away. By holding various coins at arm’s length, she guessed the UFO’s apparent size was as large as a pea.

Mrs. Morel said that she was amazed at what she perceived before her. According to her, the object appeared to be an orange and gold globe completely covered with a honeycomb design of hexagons except for an oval window of paler color situated on the upper left portion of the UFO. The witness thought the object was not totally opaque but had a peculiar translucent quality about it. The flashes of red, green and blue light were rays or beams emanating

from a source in the center; these three colors constantly changed back and forth (as in the twinkling of a star). A steady, thin, high-pitched whine was emitted by the object and, according to the woman, this sound was felt through her body as a tingling sensation.

Mrs. Morel said her amazement quickly turned to panic when she suddenly was unable to remove her hands from the steering wheel. Moreover, she reported that she felt her eyes pulled toward the UFO and had the sensation it was taking control of her body and drawing her toward it. When asked about any possible disturbances to the car’s electrical system, she said she was not aware of any effects on her automobile’s engine, lights or radio which was playing at the time.

At no time during this phase of the sighting did the witness recall stopping her car. However, as she drove forward a “short distance” from the intersection she said she experienced a “loss of memory” (for nearly a half mile). She said she was unaware of driving a stretch between a church on her right and Westlawn Cemetery on her left although she felt her eyes followed the UFO without interruption. After the experience, she speculated that “they” may have retrieved and recorded her memory during this interval.

Suddenly Mrs. Morel said she realized where she was and became cognizant that the car was moving at a high rate of speed and that the vehicle was out of her control. She had the definite impression that the UFO was pulling her car toward it like a magnet and getting closer, its apparent size having increased to an angle subtended by a dime at arm’s length. The observer thought the object’s actual size was “at least” as big as a large automobile.” When Mr. Webb questioned Mrs. Morel closely about the car’s increased acceleration, she replied she normally was a slow, careful driver, rarely driving very fast, but did admit she could have unconsciously stepped hard on the pedal from fright although she didn’t think that was the case. It was at this point that she noticed the figure in the upper left window.

As the car approached a point opposite the middle of the cemetery the UFO closed possibly to within less than 500 feet (perhaps considerably less) becoming larger than a quarter at arm’s length. At the same time the object grew brighter and the whine seemed louder. At this point she estimated the object to be at the height of a three-story building. The figure in the window was now distinct (see drawings by Brian James which accompany this article). Mrs. Morel barely mentioned the occupants in newspaper accounts because she thought it would be too unbelievable and might discredit the whole experience.

Mrs. Morel said that the figure’s head, upper body and arms were visible while a dark horizontal surface occupying the lower portion of the oval window obscured the rest of the body. The woman guessed this humanoid could have been standing at a control board of some kind. Behind the figure was a white background. The occupant’s body appeared darker than the face, with small shoulders, but it was uncertain whether the body was clothed in a uniform or not. The rounded head was grayish (between a gray and flesh tone) except for a darker color on top, and the face bore wrinkles or loose skin like an elephant’s hide. Angling upward across the forehead, two large “egg-shaped” eyes with large dark pupils gripped the observer’s attention so much that she felt unable to look away. She said she received an impression or awareness that “told” her “don’t be afraid.” A mouth-slit turned down at the corners, completed the description of the face. No nose or ears were noticed.

Panic-stricken, Mrs. Morel believed she was in imminent danger of being captured by the UFO. Passing by the cemetery, she spotted a house ahead on the left. The globe became so dazzling that she covered her eyes with an arm and simultaneously turned the wheel with the other hand, entering the driveway of the Beaudoin house at an angle and coming to a halt partly on the front lawn. The witness had covered a distance of almost exactly a mile from the Route 114/13 intersection and now she was only 3/4 mile from home.

Leaving the engine running and the headlights on, Mrs. Morel said she pushed open the door of the car. At that instant the Beaudoin’s growling German Shepherd dashed up to the woman as she got out of the car. Normally afraid of strange dogs, she said she “belted” the animal across the mouth! Though she did not recall running to the house, she began pounding on the kitchen door, ringing the bell and yelling over and over again, “Help me! Help me! Help me!”

Glancing to her right, she noticed the UFO had shifted its position from west to north as if to keep her in view and was now hovering directly across the road opposite the Beaudoin house. The object still emitted its high-pitched whine, which according to Mrs. Morel was becoming almost unbearable. (Mrs. Morel pointed out the globe’s new position and Mr. Webb determined an elevation/azimuth of 12°/15°; the object had changed direction from about 280° to 15°, a drastic shift in azimuth of 95°.

After what the witness estimated to be about 2 minutes of attempting to attract the attention of the residents of the house, the door was opened by Mr. Beaudoin as Mrs. Morel began sinking to her knees in almost a faint. The Beaudoins had been asleep upstairs and reluctantly came down in response to the persistent noise at the door. Mrs. Beaudoin said an obviously frightened woman, her eyes wide open with terror, fell into Mr. Beaudoin’s arms, crying, “Help me! I’m not drunk! I’m not on drugs! A UFO just tried to pick me up!” Mrs. Beaudoin said the witness was covering her ears but neither she nor her husband remember hearing any unusual sound. Mrs. Morel said that the sound ceased and the numbness or tingling sensation she had experienced vanished after two minutes in the Beaudoin kitchen. However, she became aware of a bright spot much similar to the effect caused by staring too long at a bright light source.

The clock on the kitchen wall read 4:30. Mrs. Beaudoin said the woman’s story sounded impossible but she did phone the Goffstown Police Department and reported the occurrence. Goffstown Patrolman Daniel Jubinville, 23, received the call while on routine patrol and proceeded to the Beaudoin house, arriving there at 4:40 a.m. On his way to the door the officer turned off the lights and engine of the Morel car, then heard Mrs. Morel’s account. In his report to Mr. Webb he stated: “This writer took note that the subject was quite shaken up and this writer did not note any evidence of alcohol or drug influence.”

This, basically, is the “meat” of the Goffstown incident. After officer Jubinville arrived the four went outside and spotted an object whose light seemingly went out when a flashlight was trained on it, and appeared to move slightly, occasionally changing colors. However, in his evaluation of the report, Mr. Webb said: “The multi witness phase of the sighting, in my judgment, must be ruled ambiguous and therefore not supportive of the Morel sighting because (1) the object, as described by all four observers, matched the appearance and behavior of both the planet Mars and the UFO (the latter when seen at a distance) and (2) the planet’s known position was too close to the UFO’s estimated position to entirely dismiss the planet from contention.

Mr. James worked with Mr. Webb and the witness to execute the artwork which accompanies this report.