The UFO Sighting in Minnesota, 1979

As he observed the strange, brilliant light in a patch of trees, approximately two and a half miles south of his position, Deputy Sheriff Val Johnson of Marshall County briefly wondered if it could be a case of drug smugglers crossing the Canadian border and heading toward the desolate, flat land of far northwestern Minnesota. The light appeared unusually close to the ground, hinting at the possibility that the aircraft had either landed or crashed. Or perhaps it had a more ordinary explanation. Johnson decided to investigate, heading down the county highway at 1:40 A.M. on August 27, 1979.

In an instant, Johnson was taken by surprise as the light rapidly sped toward him, moving with such speed that its movement seemed almost instantaneous. The final thing he heard was the sound of shattering glass. At 2:19 A.M., a faint voice came over the radio in the sheriff’s office at Warren, Minnesota. It was Johnson, now regained consciousness. His car had skidded sideways, now positioned at an angle across the northbound lane, its front leaning toward the ditch. When asked what had happened, Johnson could only respond, "I don’t know. Something just struck my car."

When officers arrived at the site, they discovered the car had suffered unusual damage, including a severely cracked windshield, a bent antenna, broken lights, and other impairments. Interestingly, both the car's clock and Johnson's wristwatch were running 14 minutes behind, although both had been accurate before the UFO encounter. Johnson also experienced severe eye pain, which, according to a doctor, resembled the effects of "welding burns."

Allan Hendry of the Center for UFO Studies, along with experts from Ford and Honeywell, conducted a thorough investigation. Their findings suggested that the windshield damage was likely caused by stones, which seemed to have been propelled by the unknown object. A Honeywell expert speculated that the bent antenna was probably the result of a "high-velocity air blast superimposed on the air movement over the fast-moving car."

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