Case · UFO Afrinews No 17, February 1998 (cover); masthead printed as January 1998
Lights in the Sky G: beams over Mana Pools, Zambezi River
1997 ยท Mana Pools, Zambezi River, Zimbabwe
What was reported
Malcolm Brown (a pseudonym) of Harare was camping at Mana Pools with friends Ralph and Nikki. Brushing his teeth around 23:30 on Friday 29 August 1997 he sensed something behind him and turned to find two orangey-yellow lights, like candle flames but extremely bright, shining straight down from something very large whose outline he could not make out, about 50 m away and 200-300 m up. It hovered, moved north-east about 10 m, paused as if adjusting, then went off gently but gathering speed over the Zambian border, the lights reddening with distance and leaving torch-like trails in the dark, moonless sky for about five minutes. Nikki saw three smaller lights below and cried; every animal sound stopped. Next day Malcolm found no marks where the beams had lit roughly an acre. A cousin's report from the Doma area is entered separately.
What Hind made of it
Featured because it has real substance and multiple witnesses; researchers Alan, Doug, Gunter Hofer and Maria Sullivan followed up. Hind says such reports are printed so some may later be identified, even if simply explained.
In their words
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I could see as though it was daylight. But quite unlike aeroplane lights: they were extremely large at source.
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They moved in unison and whatever it was, must have been absolutely huge!
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the silence was absolute, even the animal sounds stopped
Cross references
- Chete Gorge sighting same night (this issue)
- Doma farming area, Mhangura, 23:00 same night (this issue)
- Mazvikadei and Cabora Bassa lights 30 August 1997 (this issue)