On November 16, 2021, a strange and unsettling event occurred in the rural area of Jacinto Arauz, a small town in La Pampa, Argentina, involving a woman named Irma Rick. The incident, reported by La Arena and later covered by the Crónica TV channel, bears eerie similarities to earlier alleged UFO abductions in the region, particularly the 1983 Julio Platner case, and has reignited debate about unexplained phenomena in this part of Argentina. The case remains a focal point for UFO researchers and skeptics alike, with its details raising questions about extraterrestrial activity, psychological phenomena, and the region’s history of anomalous events.
The incident began when Irma Rick, a 55-year-old woman, vanished from a field called “El Estribo,” located about 40 kilometers southwest of Jacinto Arauz near the Las Cuatro Esquinas area. She was last seen around 6 a.m. by her partner, who left for another property and returned at 10 a.m. to find her missing. Assuming she might have gone for a walk, as she occasionally did, he initially wasn’t alarmed. However, when she didn’t return, a search involving local police, volunteer firefighters, and trained dogs was launched by that evening, with brigadists from General Acha joining later. After nearly 24 hours, on November 17, 2021, Irma was found 65 kilometers away near the Guatraché checkpoint, in a state of shock and unable to speak initially.
When Irma recovered enough to communicate, first by writing and later verbally, she described a bewildering experience. She recalled hearing a strange noise while at the field, stepping outside to investigate, and seeing a bright white light. The next thing she knew, she was at the Guatraché checkpoint, with no memory of how she got there. She was taken to hospitals in General Acha and then Guatraché for routine tests, before being transferred to Jacinto Arauz’s hospital. Medical staff noted her shock, but she appeared physically unharmed and was eventually released to rest at home. Her consistent story—to doctors, family, and later the Crónica TV crew that interviewed her on November 26, 2021—suggested a classic abduction scenario, though she provided no detailed recollection of being aboard a craft or encountering entities.
Local ufologist Oscar “Quique” Mario, a well-known figure in La Pampa’s UFO research community, took a keen interest in the case. He interviewed Irma’s family and friends, noting the absence of vehicle tracks that could explain her sudden relocation 65 kilometers away. Mario drew parallels to the 1983 Julio Platner abduction in Winifreda, La Pampa, where Platner, a farmer, claimed he was taken aboard a craft, interacted with humanoid beings, and returned conscious with a detailed account. In contrast, Irma remained in shock and only gradually regained her ability to speak, a difference Mario highlighted. He labeled the Jacinto Arauz area a “hot zone” for UFO activity, citing a history of strange phenomena since the 1980s, including animal mutilations, sightings of triangular objects, and reports of beings with red eyes.
Adding to the intrigue, a truck driver from Darregueira, traveling toward Bahía Blanca on November 15, 2021, just after 11 p.m., reported seeing unusual lights in the sky between 17 de Agosto and Villa Iris. He described a bright light hovering above the ground, which he initially mistook for an antenna, but realized there were none in that area. The light descended toward the horizon, dimmed, then flared brightly before disappearing, only to reappear later near Paraje La Tigra. The driver, speaking to La Arena, didn’t directly link his sighting to Irma’s case but noted the frequency of strange lights in the region, describing a chilling sensation during the encounter.
The case also echoes a 2002 incident in the same area, where farmer Raúl Dorado reported a similar experience. On August 4, 2002, Dorado heard a loud, whirlwind-like noise while working in a field, then saw a green, circular object with three legs hovering a meter above him. He described being struck by a “current” that left him petrified and kneeling, claiming the object “swallowed” his cellphone before departing. Like Irma, he was initially unable to speak, communicating through gestures and writing, and was hospitalized in Jacinto Arauz. A doctor noted a puncture mark on his finger, which he couldn’t explain, and Dorado later recounted the event with clarity, though his wife noted his need to process the trauma.
Skeptics might argue Irma’s experience could stem from a psychological episode or disorientation, possibly exacerbated by the rural isolation and stress of her environment. The lack of physical evidence—no burns, marks, or recovered objects—weakens the extraterrestrial hypothesis. However, the absence of vehicle tracks, her sudden 65-kilometer displacement, and the corroborating reports of lights and triangular objects from neighbors challenge mundane explanations like getting lost or being transported by a passerby. The prosecutor, Virginia Antón, kept the case under judicial investigation, awaiting a formal statement from Irma, which she had not provided by November 26, 2021, due to her fragile state.
The Jacinto Arauz incident fits into La Pampa’s broader history of UFO activity, as Mario’s “hot zone” designation suggests. The region’s rural expanse, low population density, and proximity to areas with reported cattle mutilations during the 2020 pandemic create an environment ripe for unexplained phenomena. Whether Irma’s experience was an abduction, a psychological event, or something else entirely, it underscores the enduring mystery of UFO sightings in Argentina’s heartland, a mystery that continues to captivate researchers and locals alike.
