A Campbell River resident㽶Ƶֱs video, shot in May of flickering lights over the water off the city, garnered speculation about a possible Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs).
Dean Berg, who shot the video of the flickering lights for approximately 45 minutes from his balcony at Heron㽶Ƶֱs Landing, was shocked by what he saw while shooting the video.
㽶ƵֱI㽶Ƶֱd never seen anything like it again,㽶Ƶֱ said Berg when speaking to the Mirror about his footage.
However, it appears that the lights Berg saw on may 29 have a simple, straightforward explanation: night kites.
A variation on the box kite, a night kite has been outfitted with ultra lite LED lights which allow hobbyists to fly at night in style.
Rebecca Williams of Nanaimo, says her husband, Neil, was the individual flying the kites along the seaside during that night in May when Berg recorded his footage.
㽶ƵֱHe was in Campbell River for a few days,㽶Ƶֱ Williams said of Neil, who works as a crane operator. 㽶ƵֱIf he goes out of town, he will take his many kites with him. He was on the beach flying.㽶Ƶֱ
Williams says her and her husband have flown night kites for at least 15 years.
㽶ƵֱThey aren㽶Ƶֱt close to how high aircraft is,㽶Ƶֱ said Williams. 㽶ƵֱIt㽶Ƶֱs surprising to think that people would mistake it for a UFO.㽶Ƶֱ
Berg㽶Ƶֱs reaction to the explanation that it was kites, not extraterrestrials, was one of essential disbelief.
㽶ƵֱI㽶Ƶֱd never heard of night kites before,㽶Ƶֱ said Berg. 㽶ƵֱIt would be nice to see a good video of them though.㽶Ƶֱ