Loch Raven Dam Encounter

Tier 2 — Declassified RecordsEQI 35BAI 28October 26-27, 1958·Loch Raven Dam, Baltimore County, Maryland, USA~20k nearby sightings

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EQI35/100

Evidence quality · 6 components

BAI28/100

Behavioral anomalousness · 4 components

AATIPInstant. Accel.HypersonicLow ObservableTrans-MediumLift w/o Surfaces

TL;DR

Two civilian engineers' car engine and headlights failed completely as they approached an egg-shaped craft hovering over Loch Raven Dam bridge; both sought hospital treatment the same night for skin burns documented by a physician as consistent with radiation exposure - making it one of the best-documented vehicle electromagnetic effect cases in Project Blue Book's Unidentified files.

Confirmed

  • Both witnesses sought medical attention the same night and a physician documented skin redness consistent with radiation or heat exposure
  • Vehicle engine and headlights failed in proximity to the object (corroborated by both witnesses independently)
  • Project Blue Book classified the case Unidentified (Case 6148)
  • Both witnesses gave consistent accounts when interviewed separately

Unresolved

  • ?Nature and origin of the egg-shaped craft generating the electromagnetic and thermal effects
  • ?Whether the vehicle electromagnetic effects were causally related to the object or coincidental
  • ?The full contents of the medical records documenting the burns
  • ?Whether any radar data from nearby installations recorded an unknown contact that night

Strongest mundane explanation

Ball lightning or a large atmospheric electrical phenomenon could produce localized light, heat, and electromagnetic effects - but the duration of the encounter, the structured egg shape observed by both witnesses, and the controlled ascent and departure are inconsistent with atmospheric phenomena that dissipate in place.

Two engineers driving near Loch Raven Dam outside Baltimore encountered a large egg-shaped craft hovering over the bridge spanning the dam. Their car engine and headlights failed as they approached. The object emitted intense heat and light before ascending rapidly with a loud sound. Both men suffered radiation-type skin burns requiring medical treatment. Project Blue Book investigated and classified the case 'Unidentified' (Case 6148). It remains one of the best-documented vehicle electromagnetic effect (EME) cases in the Blue Book archive.

Key Facts

  • Witnesses Alvin Cohen and Philip Small were driving near Loch Raven Dam at approximately 10:30 PM
  • Object described as roughly 100 feet long, egg-shaped, hovering 75-100 feet above the bridge
  • Car engine and headlights failed completely as they approached within 75-80 feet of the object
  • Witnesses exited the vehicle and observed the object for 30-40 seconds; intense heat was felt on their faces
  • Object then flared brilliantly white, rose rapidly with a loud thunderclap-like sound, and disappeared
  • Both men reported to hospital the same night with sunburn-like redness on their faces and hands
  • Symptoms described by the examining physician as consistent with radiation exposure
  • Project Blue Book classified the case 'Unidentified' (Case 6148)