Somewhere in the Skies - Close Encounter of the Fatal Kind

Episode Date: December 20, 2021

On episode 244 of SOMEWHERE IN THE SKIES, we take a look back at the extraordinary and tragic case of police officer, George Wheeler. After encountering a massive UFO one evening in 1976 in Elmwood, Wisconsin, he claimed to have been hit by a beam of light that forced him to the ground. Only six months after the encounter, Wheeler would be dead. There were several other witnesses to different aspects that night as well, only bolstering this incredible event.  But what makes this case even more compelling is that many other UFO reports had come in prior to and after the Wheeler incident all throughout Elmwood, Wisconsin.  What was it about this midwestern town, and did whatever happen that night cause the untimely death of George Wheeler?  Patreon: www.patreon.com/somewhereskies Website: www.somewhereintheskies.com YouTube Channel: CLICK HERE Official Store: CLICK HERE Somewhere in the Skies Coffee: CLICK HERE Order Ryan’s book in paperback, ebook, or audiobook by CLICKING HERE Twitter: @SomewhereSkies Instagram: @SomewhereSkiesPod Somewhere in the Skies Subreddit: www.reddit.com/r/SomewhereSkiesPod/ Watch Mysteries Decoded for free at www.CWseed.com Opening Theme Song, "Ephemeral Reign" by Per Kiilstofte SOMEWHERE IN THE SKIES is part of the eOne podcast network. To learn more, CLICK HERE Copyright © 2021 Ryan Sprague. All rights reserved. Copyright Disclaimer: Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/somewhere-in-the-skies. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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For many, witnessing a UFO can shake the very foundation of their beliefs and existence. It can often be exhilarating, scary, tense, and even awe-inspiring. But can it also be fatal? In 1976, a police officer in Elmwood, Wisconsin, encountered a craft of unknown origin. and then died. This is the mysterious and tragic case of George Wheeler. This is somewhere in the skies with Ryan's bread. A relief police officer, George Wheeler witnessed and reported a UFO in April of 1976.

An incident also witnessed by several other residents, it was the second time in a year he had been present at such an event, that the incident took place in a small town with a population of less than 1,000 and a one-man police force lends it a sense of both romanticism and reality. Furthermore, several other sightings in the mid to late 1970s in the Badger State seemingly shared very similar details and descriptions, suggesting that there was a growing UFO wave happening in the dairy lands of a man. America. The George Wheeler account appeared in the public arena in the April

1976 edition of the APRO newsletter. APRO is the acronym for the Aerial Phenomena Research Organization. Today, almost half a century later, the George Wheeler case is still of interest to UFO researchers and enthusiasts. At around 11 p.m. on the evening of April 22nd, 1976, Wheeler would spot what he believed to be an orange glow from a fire near Tuttle Hill in the small town of Elmwood, Wisconsin. Around 60 miles from the Mississippi River, and with the population, at the time, of just over 700 people, Elmwood was typical of its era of small town America. Wheeler himself had over three decades experience in policing, having served with state departments in New York and Wisconsin, as well as acting as a, quote,

one-man police force in Elmwood, before retiring to a reserve officer, essentially filling in the current one-man police force when they were away. It is also, perhaps important to mention that Wheeler was an experienced second World War pilot, who had seen combat on several occasions. In short, it would appear the relief police officer was a reliable and credible witness. On this evening, however, thinking a fire was about to rip through the small town, he jumped in his vehicle and made his way to the location. Upon arriving, however, he wouldn't find any flames of an uncontrollable blaze. Instead, he witnessed a strange glowing object, hovering approximately 100 feet,

above the ground. Wheeler would estimate that he was around 500 feet from the hovering craft. He could see six bluish white lights as well as several windows or port holes along the side. Even more intriguing and concerning were the moving shadows suggesting that someone was inside this silver-colored craft. He noticed an open side panel which allowed him to glimpse inside the craft. Wheeler could see something revolving slowly,

which reminded him of a turbine. As his focus shifted to the bottom of the craft, he noticed several legs protruding from the underside. However, more prominent was a black hose-like appendage which connected to the bottom of the main part of the craft. He would radio his report to the sheriff's department in nearby Ellsworth. But as he was doing so, suddenly, the craft rose with alarming speed. A bluish flash hit the area, including his patrol car, causing the radio to cut out instantly.

The car's lights and engine also went out without warning. When the radio came back to life a short while later, with a voice asking Wheeler if he needed assistance, he would reply, My God, it's a UFO. Wheeler would take a few seconds to clear his thoughts. He would estimate seeing the object for no more than a minute. He would also recall a whooshing noise as it zoomed upward into the night sky. Wheeler would further recall that the main exterior of the craft was indeed a metallic silver color. The top was a brilliant glow of orangey white.

In fact, he would claim staring at this top part was like looking into the sun. I was just about to make this left turn when I noticed this large ball of flame. It was almost upon me. I had hardly time to think, but it looked like it was coming right straight at me. Then, when it did move,

it lurched, real sharp, 90-degree angle. When it lurched and took off. I don't think I would have been able to more than the snit my finger for us and it was gone. Gone. Couldn't see nothing. Furthermore, he would state that the craft was huge, at least around the size of a two-story house. Perhaps of most interest was the black holes like appendage. Wheeler claimed it projected downward into the trees below. There are, however, several close-contact UFO sightings featuring similar black tubes. Most often, these devices are seemingly used to extract water or even collect soil samples.

If we accept, just for a moment, that the black tube that Wheeler witnessed was similar to other sightings around the globe, what exactly was it trying to extract? Notably, there was a farmhouse nearby owned by the O'Brien family. This means there will likely be a water supply tower, too. However, it would appear that no direct activity was reported by the family. Mr. O'Brien would claim that a little after 11 p.m., the television reception went dead, but quickly returned. This time period matched when the object took off into the sky knocking out the police radio and car engine, according to Wheeler. It's also worth mentioning the testimony from a witness from another farm in the area.

A nine-year-old boy who would claim that his sister returned to the family home that evening. Of more interest, however, was the reaction of the family dogs as she did so. Instead of running to her as they would do normally, they were keeping their distance and barking repeatedly. Shortly after the incident, 36-year-old dairy farmer David Mutz was returning home from dropping off the family babysitter when he saw Wheeler's squad car parked across the road with the lights on. He pulled over his vehicle and walked over to Wheeler's car to see if the longtime Elwood police officer needed some assistance. Moots was aware of a past heart attack suffered by Wheeler,

so when he saw him struggling to get out of his squad car, he at first believed he might be having another similar heart attack. But the closer he got to the car, he could clearly see there was something wrong with Wheeler. but it didn't seem to be a heart attack. He called out to Wheeler asking if he was okay. Wheeler replied that he'd been hit. Mutz grew concerned.

He asked Wheeler if he had been hit by a car. And Wheeler's reply was perhaps the last thing the dairy farmer expected to hear. No, Wheeler said, by one of those UFOs. The use of the word those is interesting. interesting, suggesting that UFO sightings were common knowledge among the residents of this town. When Mutz was interviewed later and asked about this, he would claim that a lot of people claim to have witnessed UFOs and strange objects in the area, so much so that he didn't think twice when Wheeler mentioned this. What did surprise him, though, was the claim of being hit by a UFO.

Moots would further recall how dazed Wheeler appeared, and how he was not at all like himself. There were several other witnesses to the evening's events. For example, Homemaker, Mrs. Workland, was at home just outside of Elmwood when her cuckoo clock announced it was 11 p.m. She would make her way to the kitchen in order to take her regular shot of medicine. As she did so, however, she would happen to catch a glance out of her kitchen window. There, opposite her home, was a bright orange moon-shaped object hovering over Tuttle Hill. She would watch the object for several minutes before simply going to bed and going to sleep. When asked why, she did not report the sighting or even wake her husband, she claimed she had seen lots of strange objects in the area.

And furthermore, her husband usually claimed they were likely just the moon. Another witness, however, Paul Fredrickson would report his citing. Frederickson, the administrator of the Heritage of Elmwood Nursing Home, was at home when he received a phone call. It was the wife of the police chief who asked that he might go to the front of his house and look out of the window. When he did, he would see an orange glow like a moon cut in half, and once again, the object appeared to be over a tunnel hill.

Fredrickson would quickly dismiss the idea that the orange glow was a blaze of some kind, as there were no flames or smoke. By the time he returned to the phone, his wife was now awake and downstairs. By the time they returned to the front window, the glowing object was no longer there. At the time of the incident, Elmwood Police Chief Gene Helmer was at home monitoring the police scanner as he relaxed for the evening. However, when he heard Wheeler's report of the UFO, he took an immediate interest in the unfolding events. Even more so, when the radio suddenly went dead in the middle of Wheeler's report, Helmer was preparing to leave the house to make his way to the location.

when the radio suddenly burst into life again several moments later. On the line was Wheeler's voice saying, Get somebody up here. I've been hit. The police chief left the house and jumped into his car, immediately setting off for Tuttle Hill, which was about a quarter mile away. When he arrived several minutes later, Mutes was already with Wheeler attempting to calm him down.

Helmer, who knew Wheeler very well, would later claim to have not previously seen him so upset or frightened. At around the same time, as Helmer arrived at Tuttle Hill, so did Wheeler's wife, who would also been listening in on the police frequency scanner. She would ultimately take her husband home and contact the family doctor, Frank Springer, for advice. Dr. Springer would ask that she bring Wheeler to his home so that he could examine him right away. She did so, and following this, the doctor prepared a shot which would calm Wheeler down and help him to sleep. However, after returning home and reporting the incident in full to Chief Helmer by 1 a.m., Wheeler was still not quite back to normal.

On further advice of Dr. Springer, Mrs. Wheeler would drive her husband to the nearest hospital. Wheeler would ultimately stay in the hospital for three days. During that time, doctors would perform several tests and examinations on him. Ultimately, they could find nothing wrong with him. After his initial discharge from the hospital, however, he would return a second time suffering from intense headaches and bizarre nightmares. He'd stay in the hospital this time for 11 days. Again, however, nothing of concern was to be.

discovered, and doctors could find no obvious reason for his symptoms. Mentally, Wheeler was certainly back to his normal self. Dr. Springer, however, would state that the physical ailments that had put Wheeler in the hospital were certainly not normal. Perhaps one of the more bizarre elements of this case is that Wheeler would tell about the encounter to his superior and his wife in great detail. He would write the report in full all about it. However, by only several weeks later, Wheeler had all but forgotten the details of the entire incident.

There are several other sightings in the Wisconsin area that took place around the same time as Wheeler's event. Paul Fredrickson, who witnessed the glowing object from the front window of his home, could offer very little more about what he'd seen that night, but he did have another experience of his own, only several months earlier, somewhere around the 20th of October, 1975. And what's more, the setting occurred at approximately the same location. That evening, a little after 10 p.m., Frederickson was returning home with his son in the car after working late. Suddenly, as they were driving near Tuttle Hill, his son spotted something strange in the skies overhead and alerted his father.

Fredrickson at first believed the object was simply a full moon. That was until it moved with great velocity overhead. He would immediately pull the car to the side of the road and exited the vehicle. He would later describe the object as, quote, big and orange in color, and it was coming towards us, end quote. However, when it was directly overhead, it looked like the bottom of a huge gray plate. He would estimate the craft was between 500 to a thousand feet above them

and was approximately 100 feet in width. Interestingly, when it hovered over them, a sound similar to a waterfall was audible. Frederickson's sun would also later state that a blue and green beam emerged briefly from the object. In a manner of seconds, the glowing craft disappeared into the distance. A little over six months before Fredrickson's encounter,

and once again, in Elmwood, the Forster family would share an experience that would forever change their lives, so much so that Mrs. Forster would tell the Elmwood Argus in their March 13th 1975 edition that, quote, I was always an unbeliever as far as UFOs were concerned, but I'm Not anymore." According to the account, Mrs. Forrester and her three children, Mary, Anne-Marie, and Tom, were driving back from Arkansas, where they were visiting family. As they were driving, they noticed a bright star in the sky above. All throughout the journey, the star appeared to remain with them.

However, Mrs. Forster soon noticed that the star was dipping lower, and seemingly moving towards them. She stopped the car temporarily and contemplated driving into one of the many farms in the area for assistance, or advice on what the strange light might be. However, she would quickly dismiss this idea and set out once more on her way. By the time she had reached the Weber Farm, the star was right above the treetops. She felt sure that it was not merely a star and finally convinced herself to drive into the Weber farm. The Weber's son, Roger, was at home with his own two children.

All three would witness the strange light. Roger would offer that it was not a star, but it might be a satellite. Feeling a little reassured, Mrs. Forster got back into her car and drove on once more. She was, she reasoned, only three miles from home. She had only been back on the road for a matter of minutes when the brightly lit object came closer to the vehicle. So close, in fact, that it began to descend in the middle of the road right in front of the car. She would later describe the object as looking like two stuck-together saucers. The object itself was white, but there were various colored lights around the sides.

On the underside, there appeared to be stick-like legs. She would estimate the craft to be around the size of a standard car. At this point, all three of the children were beyond frightened. Mrs. Forster immediately put the vehicle into reverse and quickly made her way back to the Weeper Farm. As she did so, she repeatedly pressed on the car's horn. It had the desired effect as both Roger and the... and his two children rushed outside to see what the matter was. Roger would ultimately put his children in his car and then escort Mrs. Forster home.

Although the glowing object continued to follow them, it did not attempt to land again. And soon it disappeared out of sight. At around 2 a.m., in the early hours of April 6, 1975, Rod Seagraves and Mike Lewandowski, both 18 years old, were driving toward Athens from the town of Wausau in Wisconsin. Suddenly, their CB radio ceased to work. At around the same time, Mike would notice a pulsating silver-gray object ahead of them. He would later describe the object as flat on the bottom and dome-shaped on the top, and appeared to be hovering just above the ground. They continue forward the road particularly quiet due to the late hour until they both saw what they thought

was a tree on the roadside around seven feet in height. However, when they saw it moving slowly, they increased the car's speed, not stopping until they arrived back in Wausau at around 3 a.m. They would park the car behind a restaurant and both sat there contemplating what they had just witnessed. Both of them tired at this point. would ultimately fall asleep in the car. At first, I didn't think it was real. I woke up to this blinding light, and I was transported to another place.

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fringe Arrow, the 100 NX files may cause excitement, loss of sleep, and sudden belief in extraterrestrials, no credit cards or alien encounters, Siri, Pluto TV, stream now, pay never. Upon waking up, they were in a completely different location in the car park. Even stranger, both of them had dirt all over their clothing, and their gas tank was showing lower than it should have,

half a tank lower. They would ultimately propose to themselves that they returned to the location of the incident at some point after parking. However, whatever it happened once they arrived there, they could no longer remember. There are several other UFO reports and encounters around Wisconsin in the weeks immediately before and after the George Wheeler incident. For example, on the early morning of March 6, 1976, at a little after 5 a.m., police would receive reports from a resident in Two Rivers, Wisconsin. of a blue white light hovering just to the north of the city. A police unit would set off in the direction of the glow.

They too would report seeing a glow as well as something akin to a long vapor trail. The police would state their belief that the glow was from a comet. Just over a week after, George Wheeler's encounter, a small notice in the Tribune record claimed that UFOs were the topic of discussion in recent days. Furthermore, the story claimed a few calls had come into the Sheriff's Department from concerned locals, specifically of seeing strange objects overhead, although not always as high as we might imagine.

An incident around six weeks after George Wheeler's sighting in late May, however, definitely stands out as one of the most detailed. At around 10.30 p.m. on May 20, 1976, friends, Gail Bach and Kathy Holt, were driving back to Elmwood after attending an emergency medical technician training course in River Falls. However, shortly after setting off, an object flying just above the treetops to the side of them caught their attention. They followed it for several moments before losing sight of it, as they traveled along the road.

The next thing they knew, though, the light was seemingly in front of them and coming straight at them. They would ultimately stop the car, realizing as soon as they did that the object was directly overhead. When Gell left the car to observe the object, she could see that on the perfectly round underside

were several red and blue flashing lights. Almost in unison with the two ladies setting off once again, the object immediately moved in the opposite direction. Both Kathy and Gail would state to local reporters that they had both witnessed similar incidents before, including an orange-glowing object, strikingly similar to George Wheeler and Paul Fredericks' incitings as well. Perhaps even more interesting,

Gail Bach would make reference to George Wheeler when she said to reporters that the object she witnessed was not as big as the one George Wheeler saw. She would also claim that a previous sighting took place in the company of Paul Fredrickson. It would appear that George and Paul were a magnet for UFO events. Another fascinating incident occurred in July of 1976. One evening in the small town of Malone in the Fond-Dulac region of the state, Mark Zieglebauer would claim that he witnessed a strange object descend in land in a field on his family's farm.

Shortly after, he witnessed green men outside the craft. As bizarre as this account sounds, Mark's father, Orville, also witnessed the craft descending several moments earlier at around 10 p.m. while he was working. He would then alert his son to the strange events. Both would see the multicolored rotating lights of this craft as it came down towards the field in which it settled. Upon his father's instructions, Mark would drive over to the field in question. When he arrived, he would see the two strange green figures. He would inadvertently shine the car's headlights directly at them, noticing how they lifted their hands to their faces to shield their eyes.

from the light, he immediately dimmed and lowered the beam. As he did so, however, the two figures simply disappeared somehow, right in front of him. Unnerved, he left the area and returned to his father. When UFO investigators arrived in the area to speak with the family about the incident, it would come to light that another nearby resident witnessed a flying object around an hour before the incident at the Segal Bower Farm. Although it was almost three years to the day of the George Wheeler case, another incident on the afternoon of April 19, 1978, would also feature a Wisconsin police officer

witnessing a strange aerial craft. Furthermore, Mark Coltrane would also manage to snap several pictures of the saucer-like craft with his Polaroid camera. Coltrane was on patrol duty at the time and was driving near the town of Colfax. It was a little after 12 p.m. noon when he decided to find somewhere to pull over and buy something to eat. He was just about to radio in for his intentions to do so when he realized that the radio was crackling significantly. It was then that he noticed a metallic-looking disc ascending into the sky.

It appeared as though it was heading toward him, but being more concerned with picking up his Polaroid camera, he wasn't sure of the exact movements of the craft. The saucer-like craft was out of sight within a few minutes. Although the sighting was, for the most part, from a considerable distance, the incident left Coltrane in a state of mild shock. So much so, in fact, that he simply sat in his car for at least an hour before officially submitting his report of the incident. The George Wheeler case is perhaps one of several such incidents in the Wisconsin area in the mid to late 1970s of significance, and certainly one to

keep in the forefront of our minds as we continue our search for answers to the UFO question. And what of Wheeler's previous UFO citing? Could this just be pure coincidence? Or like mentioned before, was he some sort of magnet for these events? After all, he was a police officer, albeit a relief one, so it is perfectly reasonable to assume he would have more chances than your average resident of witnessing something strange in the skies over the town. Tragically, for Wheeler's family and friends, as well as the Elmwood community at large, despite a lifetime of relatively good health, George Wheeler would suddenly deteriorate, so much so, in fact, that within six months of the UFO incident, he had passed away. Furthermore, the official cause of his death

remains unknown, but rather than focusing on Wheeler's death as some grand conspiracy or even caused directly by the UFO incident, we can focus on the life of a man who dead dedicated his entire life to protecting his town, and in doing so, possibly came into contact with something truly extraordinary, if not otherworldly. His account remains one of the most talked about UFO encounters, not only in the greater Wisconsin area, but in all of uphology. And hopefully, George Wheeler is now getting the answers he sought in life. in life, to what happened to him and so many others, where they stared into the skies and inevitably had something stare back. This episode was co-researched and inspired by an article written by Marcus

Loth at the website UFO Insight. To learn more, visit UFOinsight.com. If you haven't already, please take just a moment to rate and review Somewhere in the Skies on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get the show. It helps us gain visibility and find new listeners. Thank you for your support. And remember, keep your feet on the ground, but never stop searching, somewhere in the skies. Somewhere in the Skies is produced by Third Kind Productions, in association with the Entertainment One Podcast Network.