Case file · Close encounter
DesVergers 'scoutmaster' encounter
On 19 August 1952 scoutmaster Sonny DesVergers walked into palmetto scrub near West Palm Beach, Florida, and came out saying a hovering craft had sprayed him with a fireball.
1952 CE · 26.80, -80.13 · status: hoax
The account
His three scouts saw lights in the woods from the car. Singed grass and burned cap hairs were sent to Project Blue Book, and Edward Ruppelt flew down to investigate in person.
The sceptical view
Blue Book filed it as a hoax. Ruppelt called it 'the best hoax in UFO history', citing DesVergers' record and his attempts to sell the story, though he admitted he could not show how it was staged.