Near Domart-En-Ponthieu, FR being encounter — October 14, 1954

Mr and Mrs Dumeige, cattle dealers, were travelling with cattle broker Mr Lourdel on the road between Domart-en-Ponthieu and Condé-Folie on October 14, 1954. At about 9 p.m., near La Folie farms, they noticed a very bright light which seemed to come down in a meadow close to the road. The contemporary Courrier Picard account identifies Mr Dumeige as the driver. He stopped the truck and all three got out. Near the light they reportedly saw six or seven small figures proceeding one behind another. They became frightened and drove away. The newspaper does not provide a resolved description of the figures’ faces or a clearly delineated craft. Its principal details are the bright glow, the short figures and their single-file movement. A later investigation-derived version changes the date to October 15, the time to 7:30 p.m., the driver to an anonymous Mrs S., and the number of figures to four or five. It adds diving suits, a closer approach into the field and a subsequent unsuccessful police search. Those details should not silently replace the contemporary account. The Atlas retains its native October 14 dating and illustrates the newspaper’s three witnesses and six-or-seven-figure version, with the object obscured by light.