Thirty-one years ago this week, Thomas McCarthy discovered a
hole in the frozen surface of a man made pond on his family's horse farm in Wakefield, New
Hampshire. Recently blanketed by a blizzard, the ice
on the 100-foot-long pond measured 18 inches thick. Although the outdoor temperature
struggled to reach 5°
F, McCarthy watched as the pond's frozen surface began to melt. Startled, he
notified his father, Bill McCarthy, who estimated the size of the mysterious
hole as three feet in diameter. Using a long stick, Bill McCarthy probed the
muddy bottom of the shallow pond and noticed a small black box. After returning
to the house, Bill McCarthy called a neighbor – who notified the police.
The police officers who came to the McCarthy farm used a
Geiger counter to check the pond for radiation. When their handheld device
registered four roentgens, they alerted Civil Defense (CD) for New Hampshire. Later, CD
Deputy Director Wesley Williams explained that his organization took three
different readings with three different Geiger counters on three separate
occasions. Although one counter registered three roentgens, the other two
readings were described as "zero and low". The instrument that gave the high
reading was sent to a laboratory for suspected equipment failure, but no fault
was found. Subsequent testing of the other two devices also failed to find any
problem.
Although government officials told the McCarthys not to tell
anyone about the hole in the pond, TV crews and journalists soon descended upon
their farm. As reporters advanced theories about meteors, hot
springs, satellite debris, and ice fishing, officials verified that
no military or civilian aircraft had dropped anything over New Hampshire. The North American Air Defense
Command (ADC) even checked to see if part of a satellite had fallen from space.
Meanwhile, eyewitnesses on the ground claimed that the National Guard had
removed something from the bottom of a pond and hauled it away in a truck.
State officials explained that a chemist had merely taken samples of soil and
water, which were then transported in a black box.
On January 13, 1977, members of an inter-agency task force
arrived at the farm, examined the pond, and announced that there was nothing
hidden in its muddy waters. In the days after the scientists and reporters
left, however, Bill McCarthy noticed another oddity. Even after a windy night
of subzero temperatures, the mysterious hole would not refreeze. Instead,
only slush would form in the opening.
Resources:
http://books.google.com/books?id=5PkXpHv7HKcC&pg=PA79&lpg=PA79&dq=january+10+1977+wakefield+new+hampshire&source=web&ots=R45wyufHZn&sig=xMzYRPbFS5BKszVgMBwCsHC0Mp0
http://books.google.com/books?id=uVL7BCSdv5gC&pg=PA79&lpg=PA79&dq=january+10+1977+wakefield+new+hampshire&source=web&ots=UvtshwC5ey&sig=x8lA8FfSJje_PO9VlZveiKfWhmw
Steve Melito - The Y Files
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