Vickie Landrum's Phone Call to Report a UFO Encounter

The Call that Started it All

Vickie Landrum, 1985 AP photo

The Cash-Landrum encounter occurred the evening of December 29, 1980. Afterwards, the witnesses agreed not to tell others about it, fearing ridicule. When they began to feel ill, they did not initially associate the illnesses they were developing with the encounter, and it is not clear when they made the connection.

Betty was in such bad shape after a few days that they she was taken to Parkway Hospital in Houston. Doctors were unable to determine the cause of her illnesses, only treat her symptoms and release her after two weeks. When her problems forced her to be readmitted, Betty's cardiologist expressed frustration, saying if they knew the cause, she might be helped. At that point, seven-year-old Colby Landrum blurted out their secret. 

The details and sequence of events are not precisely known, but shortly afterwards, Vickie contacted Dayton police chief Tommy Waring. He was apparently at a loss as to what to do (the sighting was near Huffman, out of his jurisdiction), but he remembered having a business card with a contact number call for UFO reports. It took Waring two days to locate the number for Robert Gribble's National UFO Reporting Center (NUFORC) and give it to Vickie. On February 2, 1981 Vickie Landrum placed a long-distance phone call: 

"Yes sir, this is Vickie Landrum from Dayton, Texas..."

Video slideshow of Vickie Landrum's NUFORC Report

Transcript of Vickie Landrum’s call to Robert Gribble at NUFORC Feb. 2, 1981

(Recording edited only to remove contact info.)

“RG” indicates Robert Gribble of the National UFO Reporting Center in Seattle Washington.

(Note- Betty Cash was treated in Parkway Hospital, not Parkview)

Yes sir, this is Vickie Landrum from Dayton, Texas.

RG: Yes.

Uh, a deal came down and it was like fire was coming from it

RG: Uh huh. 

It got ahead of us and we had to stop, and we got out of the car,

which I didn’t stay out but just a minute ‘cause I had my 

little grandson with me, which I got custody of and I got back in the car.

There was nothing happened to me but my but eyes is burned.

But, but Betty Cash that was with me that night,

knots started coming and she had a real terrible headache.

and so she’s been in Parkview Hospital over two weeks, 

I got her out she stayed two weeks and I had to put her back.

And all of her hair has come out.

They can’t find out exactly what is wrong with her, they keep saying

it could be this, or it’s a possibility of that.

But, instead of her getting better, she’s getting worse,

and could it have had anything to do with that thing that we stood and watched,

‘cause we were close enough to it that we felt a fire from it.

RG: How close do you feel you were to that?

Uh, I’d be safe to say it wasn’t more than maybe a block and a half from it.

It lit up the whole element, and I thought that the World was coming to the end, I really did.

I told my grandson not to be afraid, that if he saw something come out 

of it, that it would be Jesus.

I thought that way I could explain to him to keep him from going into [unclear] 

(a little failure? heart failure? or possibly hysteria?)

RG: Was this a fairly large object?

Yes sir!

RG: Would it be larger than your car?

Yes sir!

RG: and did it land on the ground?

No sir. It come down almost to the treetops, and then it went back up and went to the right of us.

And we counted 23 helicopters. It might have been more. 

Come in on 1960 over here...

RG: Uh-huh

We counted those helicopters up there, so there has to be somebody that knew about it.

It was because from that, I don’t want her to die, I want her to get better.

RG: What roadway were you on at the time?

We was on the cut-off road, something called New Caney and Huffman road.

My name’s Vickie Landrum and her name is Betty Cash and she’s in Parkview hospital. Now, one of the doctors believes that we might have got some

radiation, but he is not positive.

He taken her blood and it didn’t show up in any of her blood but, in less than two weeks time she has lost all her hair- except down there at the bottom. And she has- she had hair that you wouldn’t believe.

And I mean this is not a hoax- I’m not calling you for a hoax.

Call the Parkview Hospital and verify what I’m telling you.

I’m not putting you on. I wish somebody would go to the hospital- and see that lady.

RG: We’re going to see if we can’t get some help for you and they’ll call ahead of time and make an appointment.

I- I mean, I- I’ve been afraid to call- afraid that somebody would think I was- you know, that it was a hoax. But since she’s had to go back in the hospital for the same thing and she’s not getting any better.

I have to have help from somewhere, if don’t she’s going to die.

RG: Okay, we’re going to do everything we can to help

Okay, thank you a lot.

RG Thank you.

(Ends)

Robert Gribble reported the contacted APRO and MUFON, which launched the beginning of the case as a UFO story.

(Note: John F. Schuessler erroneously dates this call as taking place on Feb. 17. Vickie makes reference to making more than one long-distance call to NUFORC, so he may have the date of a later call.  No recording of any later calls are currently available.)

Acknowledgments:
Wendy Connors first presented the NUFORC recording on SDI.
Thanks to Giuliano Marinkovic, for preserving Vickie's report and enhancing the audio clarity.

For details on Wendy Connor's original presentation, please see this earlier post:

Cash-Landrum: Phone Report of UFO to NUFORC

 © Curt Collins