The Levelland Texas UFO Wave

On the night of November 2-3, 1957, at least 15 people in and around Levelland, Texas reported close encounters with a large, egg-shaped UFO. Multiple witnesses, driving separately on different roads, reported their vehicles’ engines dying and lights failing when the object approached.

The Night

Over several hours:

• Multiple independent witnesses
• Called police with similar stories
• Described same type of object
• Vehicles affected identically
• Various locations around town

The First Report

At 10:50 PM:

• Pedro Saucedo and Joe Salaz
• Driving on Route 116
• Saw bright object approach
• Their truck’s engine died
• Lights went out

The Object

Witnesses described:

• Egg or football-shaped
• 200+ feet long
• Intensely bright
• Blue-green coloring
• Completely silent

Vehicle Effects

When object approached:

• Engines would stall
• Headlights would fail
• When object departed
• Vehicles worked normally
• Multiple witnesses experienced this

Other Witnesses

Reports came from:

• Jim Wheeler (midnight)
• Jose Alvarez
• Frank Williams
• James Long
• Newell Wright
• All independent of each other

Sheriff Weir Clem

The sheriff:

• Received multiple calls
• Initially skeptical
• Went to investigate
• Saw strange lights himself
• Filed official report

Deputy Investigations

Law enforcement:

• Multiple deputies responded
• Some saw the lights
• Could not explain
• Took reports seriously
• Filed documentation

Project Blue Book

The Air Force:

• Sent investigator
• Spent only hours on site
• Attributed to ball lightning
• Many criticized this conclusion
• Witnesses disputed it

Problems with Explanation

Ball lightning doesn’t:

• Affect engines
• Appear 200 feet long
• Occur multiple times same night
• Follow similar patterns
• The explanation was inadequate

Timing

The incident occurred:

• Same week as Sputnik 2 launch
• During UFO wave
• Multiple sightings nationwide
• Heightened public attention

Significance

The Levelland wave is significant for:

• Multiple independent witnesses
• Electromagnetic effects on vehicles
• Police involvement
• Occurring in brief time span
• Never adequately explained

Legacy

The Levelland UFO wave remains one of the best-documented cases of UFOs affecting vehicles. The multiple independent witnesses reporting identical effects make it compelling evidence for physical interaction between UFOs and automobiles.