UFO reported near Augusta, Georgia

MUFON member receives photo, report of anomaly over Grovetown, Georgia.

Two weeks ago, a resident of Grovetown, Georgia took a brief look skyward during a Friday night football game between the Grovetown Warriors and the Lincoln County Red Devils. What he saw in the sky that night immediately arrested his attention.

Moving west to east at a slow rate of speed was a wedge-shaped object – its triangular light configuration clearly visible from the stands. The witness (who wants to remain anonymous) first tried to use his cell phone to record the aberration. When his phone malfunctioned, he borrowed the phone of a friend who had joined him for the game that evening.

The witness later texted the picture to Donnie Brooke, a member of the Georgia Chapter of MUFON (Mutual UFO Network). MUFON is the world’s oldest and largest UFO phenomenon investigative body.

“I received the picture on September 1 at about 10:30 PM,” Brooke told the Baltimore Post-Examiner. “The witness knows me personally, so he was aware of my association with MUFON.”

Brooke said the witness told him over the phone that he had leaned back in his seat, looked skyward, saw a “humongous” object and thought, “That doesn’t look right.” After taking the picture and asking his friend to forward it to him, the witness ascertained that the UFO was moving eastward toward Fort Gordon Army Base.

“As soon as I received the text, I phoned the witness,” said Brooke. “The image closely resembled a triangle-shaped object I saw about eight months ago. I already knew the object I had seen was heading toward Fort Gordon, so when he told me his story, that somewhat confirmed my own encounter.”

The base (which is located just a few miles southwest of Augusta, Georgia) sits less than nine miles away from Grovetown High School.

Brooke said it would be impossible to make a direct connection between the Grovetown sighting and the army base, but noted that Fort Gordon is home to the U.S. Army Cyber Center of Excellence.

Maryland readers may recall that, in 2013, Fort Gordon won out over Fort Meade in a bid to become the location of the futuristic United States Army Cyber Command. As the Cyber Command center, Fort Gordon hosts intelligence personnel from all service branches, as well as civilians from the National Security Agency (NSA).

Grovetown Department of Public Safety official Mr. Haynes told the Baltimore Post-Examiner he could find “nothing in the system” related to calls about strange lights in the sky around the night of September 1, 2017.  Likewise, a quick search of reported sightings in Georgia to the National UFO Reporting Center yielded nothing from the night of September 1. However, another witness reported seeing a “diamond shaped” object in the sky over Lindale, Georgia just two days later.

One fascinating report does appear on September 1 in the Georgia MUFON database, but that describes an August 22 sighting near Rinngold, Georgia.

Paul Jones, Chief Investigator for the Georgia Chapter of MUFON, told the Baltimore Post-Examiner he is not surprised to hear of a possible sighting in Grovetown. “The Augusta area is chock full of interesting cases.”

Brooke said it is not unusual for people to see strange objects in the sky and then fail to report them to local authorities or a UFO agency. “These things are seen all the time, but a lot people don’t want to report them, because they are scared of what others will think. My acquaintance said he was certain of what he witnessed but doesn’t want his name in the press.”

Georgia MUFON Director Ralph O. Howard said he hopes the witnesses (“I’m told there may be several”) will eventually step forward.  “The picture Donnie has is compelling. We’re still hoping the witness who provided the picture logs onto our site and files a report.  Without having that information, we can’t launch an investigation to try to establish that the actual event is what the witness believes he saw.”

The witness told Brooke he could not say how fast the object was going, but it was definitely “moving slow.”

When asked if it was possible that the witness saw a B-2 Stealth bomber, Brooke said he didn’t believe that was the case.

“There was absolutely no sound associated with this object, and once a Stealth bomber passes overhead, it makes a whole lot of noise.” Brooke added, “It doesn’t appear any other unusual phenomena was connected with this particular event.”

Brooke urges anyone else in the Grovetown/Augusta area, who saw the object Brooke’s witness reported that night, to get in touch with the Georgia chapter of MUFON.

A somewhat similar UFO sighting near Augusta in October, 2015, was later confirmed by MUFON to be a formation of RV-8 light aircraft in preparation for a performance at the Boshears Skyfest.

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For more information about the work of MUFON, please read our interview with UFO investigator Norm Gagnon. Those in the Maryland area who interested in learning more about UFO’s are also encouraged to attend the upcoming Mysteries of Space and Sky Conference.

Anthony C. Hayes

Anthony C. Hayes is an actor, author, raconteur, rapscallion and bon vivant. A one-time newsboy for the Evening Sun and professional presence at the Washington Herald, Tony’s poetry, photography, humor, and prose have also been featured in Smile, Hon, You’re in Baltimore!, Destination Maryland, Magic Octopus Magazine, Los Angeles Post-Examiner, Voice of Baltimore, SmartCEO, Alvarez Fiction, and Tales of Blood and Roses. If you notice that his work has been purloined, please let him know. As the Good Book says, “Thou shalt not steal.”