Virgin Mary Vision Draws No Crowds

Sun., April 13, 1997

From Staff And Wire Reports

The expected crowds of people to look at reported visions of the Virgin Mary on highway signs did not materialize Saturday.

“There is very, very light traffic,” said a dispatcher at the Yakima County sheriff’s department.

Extra sheriff’s deputies were assigned to the lower Yakima Valley in anticipation of crowds, but have had little work to do, said the dispatcher, who did not want to be identified.

Last weekend, thousands of people came to see reported visions of the Virgin Mary on the backs on some highway signs near Sunnyside. The crowds disrupted traffic and raised safety concerns.

But on Saturday, it appeared that the prayers of law officers had been answered.

“I have very few cars out there,” said a woman at the Sunnyside Police Department. “There are about a dozen people.”

The State Patrol and the state Transportation Department were also monitoring the intersection of state Highway 241 and the Yakima Valley Highway, where the Madonna sightings were first reported a week ago.

The multicolored, oblong images appeared on the backs of several green highway signs and, according to many believers, resemble the traditional depiction of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Engineers believe the concentric lines of pink, blue and yellow are from oxidation on the signs.

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