Lon Strickler of Phantoms & Monsters recently spoke to South Shore Ghostbusters investigator Mark Hagan, who said that in the summer of 2018 he had twice seen a “bat-like creature” near Hammond, Indiana.

His initial email to Strickler contained a summary of the sightings.

It was August of 2018. My wife and I were driving south on Calumet Avenue and were coming up to the red light at 131st Street when we heard what sounded like leather rustling. We looked to the retention pond to our left and saw glowing red—what I am going to assume—were eyes and saw a large bat-like creature take to the skies. It was darked colored and easily had to be about six feet or more tall from what I could make out. Wingspan was close to 10 feet or more. About a week or so later driving with my colleague in the South Shore Ghostbusters. This time we saw it atop the the Cline Avenue overpass like it was eating something. We turned around only to see it take off to the skies once more. We have been investigating the area and found this particular creature sticks close to the water. We have heard multiple accounts of seeing red glowing lights over the waters of the Lost Marsh since June or so of this year.

Strickler was able to speak to Hagan over the telephone.

"Hagan told me that he is very familiar with the large fowl in the area, and that this being was definitely not one of the indigenous birds known to inhabit the areas around Lake Michigan," he said.

Both of Hagan’s sightings reportedly took place in the late evening.

Hammond, Indiana is a city bordering Lake Michigan, on the southeastern edge of the Chicago metropolitan area. The location of Hagan’s initial sighting is less than a mile south of the area where, in 2017, a witness reported two suspicious red lights that he suspected could have been glowing eyes; Hagan’s second sighting is around 10 miles southeast of the 2017 report.

The Singular Fortean Society has contacted Hagan, and will plan an onsite investigation sometime in the relatively near future. Any photographs or further evidence collected will be presented following that investigation.

This is the latest news in a string of ‘Mothman’ sightings from within a few hundred mile radius surrounding Lake Michigan, including every state bordering the great lake. These sightings ostensibly began in the spring of 2017, but more historical accounts are being reported as more people become aware of the phenomenon. Sightings of weird winged beings around Lake Michigan have been reported at all hours, often in or near a park, and around water. Witnesses consistently describe a large, gray or black bat or bird-like creature—although in a small number of cases the creature was described as insect-like—sometimes with glowing or reflective red, yellow, or orange eyes; and humanoid features such as arms and legs are often reported. Many of the sightings are also of something seen only briefly or are described only as a flying creature with few details, which leaves open the possibility that a large bird or bird-like being could explain some encounters. Sightings of anomalous avians, including thunderbirds and pterosaurs, are often reported in or near the same locations as those where witnesses have reported winged humanoids.

To report a sighting, reach out to us directly at the Singular Fortean Society through our contact page.

You can view a timeline of the sightings so far here, and an interactive map here.

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