Bessines-sur-Gartempe 1993, lights in a clearing attributed to a storm

Summary

In October 1993, several witnesses gathered in a garden near a forest in Bessines-sur-Gartempe saw colored lights in a nearby clearing, followed by a thunder-like noise and a flash. The phenomenon vanished quickly. The witnesses, who had been drinking, disagreed on details such as lightning direction and the number of thunderclaps, and did not verify whether the lights actually came from the woods. The hillside location with trees could have made lightning appear unusual.

Years later, GEIPAN revisited the case with updated tools. Weather stations reported no anomalies at 6 p.m. but noted distant storms from 8 p.m. onward, suggesting the event may have occurred later than recalled. Most evidence points to a meteorological phenomenon. The case was reclassified as B.