Marondera Sighting

The areas around Marandellas - now Marondera - seem to have been the object of visitations throughout the 1970s.

One particular report occurred about 7pm on 20 November 1976.

John Butcher was driving to a neighbouring friends farm. he was accompanied by his wife and daughter.

They were approaching the drive of Makrara Farm where they were to have dinner. They noticed what appeared to be a car coming towards them from quite a distance. they turned into the drive and Mrs Butcher turned to see if the car was following them. However it appeared to carry on round the bend and then.....she caught sight of an orange object hovering over part of their land on Dindingwe Farm.

The object moved sharply to the left and they stopped the car so they could observe it. the object was now stationary and suddenly it disappeared behind a plantation of gum trees on their farm. they had observed the object for about one and a half minutes.

It was brighter than the moon and unlike a star. it appeared to be controlled in some way. There was no military activity in the area that night.

Their next door neighbour, Mr Burl, also noticed the strange orange light and when to see John Butcher the following day as he thought it might be an army flare.

John Butcher's farm workers also witnessed the sighting. they kept well away from it as they were convinced it was a spirit from the dead. They told Mr butcher that they had met up with this spirit before and that two years previously, the last time they had seen it, it had given off a strange smell like two stones being rubbed together - a smell of burnt cordite.

He searched the area taking with him a number of his workers armed with heavy sticks but they found nothing