Project Grudge Report of Investigation: McDonald, Ohio Sighting

This document is a formal Report of Investigation conducted by the United States Air Force Office of Special Investigations (OSI) regarding a sighting of unidentified aerial phenomena in McDonald, Ohio, on 25 August 1949. The initial report, filed under Project Grudge, documented that several local citizens observed shiny objects in the sky that appeared to glitter and flop in the sun before splitting into four or five pieces and eventually falling toward the earth. One witness, 14-year-old Tom Luarde, was credited as the first to observe the spectacle and report it to the community. The investigation, led by Special Agent Charles J. Horzen, determined that the phenomena were not anomalous. Interviews revealed that employees at the local Carnegie-Illinois Steel Plant had been cleaning out an old building and burning trash, which included pieces of silver paper. The heat from the fire caused the silver paper to rise into the atmosphere, creating the appearance of 'flying saucers' to observers on the ground. The report includes a newspaper clipping from the Niles Daily Times dated 27 May 1949 (noting a discrepancy in the year or date provided in the clipping versus the report date) which confirms the local reaction and the subsequent explanation. The Air Force concluded that the incident was fully explained by the burning trash and officially closed the investigation, noting that no further action was required.