Vision of Chaos Around Chula Vista Billboard : Phenomenon: Authorities voice public safety concerns as thousands more flock to see purported image of slain child.

A large and festive crowd of more than 10,000 people gathered Friday night in Chula Vista for a chance to see the purportedly miraculous image of a slain girl appearing on a blank, white billboard, giving police further concern that the nightly event is turning into a public safety hazard.

The mystic atmosphere that has surrounded the “apparition” was heightened shortly before 9 p.m. when the three 400-watt light bulbs illuminating the base of the billboard suddenly when dark. They began flickering back on, one by one, about five minutes later.

“Spooky! There really is something there,” one elderly woman said as she watched the relighting while leaning on a cane at the corner of Main Street and Beyer Boulevard, about a quarter of a mile north of the billboard.

Police tried their best to keep cars and pedestrians separated as a friendly chaos engulfed the area, with families toting dogs and children close enough to glimpse the billboard, which believers say has a representation of the face of Laura Arroyo, a 9-year-old San Diego girl who was found slain last month after being snatched from her home about 2 miles from the billboard site.

Despite official assurances that the billboard depicts nothing more than light and shadow against a white backdrop, many onlookers postulate that the dead girl is attempting to provide a clue leading to her assailant in the unsolved killing.

The fate of Arroyo has struck a responsive chord in the South Bay, culminating in the mass “vision” on the billboard.

Chula Vista Police Lt. Sherwood George said police had no idea why the lights went off temporarily and said the department had issued no orders to extinguish the billboard lights. Employees of the company owning the billboard, Martin Outdoor Advertising, could not be reached late Friday.

On Friday, thousands gathered before dusk. Those wanting a close-up view without walking paid $3 to park in an empty field just west of the billboard.

Many brought cameras on tripods; others toted binoculars. Many others held their babies or dogs as they stared at the billboard, a subdued mixture of Spanish and English contrasting with the stop-and-go noise of snarled traffic.

And thousands continued to see what they said were one or more faces, despite the sign company having changed the three light bulbs at the base to 400 watts each from lower wattages in the hope that the interplay of light and shadows believed to be creating the image would be altered.

“I could see two faces on the left and the right, the eyes looking downward,” said Ferdinand Cosico, who brought his wife, Sandra, and 3-year-old son, J.R., from their nearby home.

His wife said, however, that she could see “only one face, sort of in the middle. I think maybe all of this is just a play of the light.”

The Cosicos came to the billboard after after being told by their nephews that they should see it.

Albert Keyjewski, 13, of Chula Vista said, “It gets clearer the farther back you stand.” He brought along his aunt from the Imperial Valley, a camera and a video camera.

“The face looks like it just covers the middle part of the billboard with her hair blowing, her eyes bluish,” he said.

Andrew Datan from Del Mar and his co-worker, Barry Galviso, had been in the South Bay during the day selling commercial bottled water. “To be honest, I don’t see anything, at least not yet, “ Datan said. “We came down here like everybody else. You hear about these ghost stories and you never know.”

Galviso added, “If you really want to see it, then you’ll see it.”

Sam and Amy Ordinario drove the 30 miles south from Rancho Bernardo.

“I see a face, the eyes, the face, the hair right above the telephone number on the left side,” Amy Ordinario said. Her husband added, “I see a face in the middle of the billboard with the eyes and the hair.”

This was their first night to see the billboard after hearing about it on the news. “We are Catholics, but it’s hard to say if this is a miracle,” Amy Ordinario said.

“It’s still amazing,” her husband added, although their teen-age son, Ross, showed less interest, preferring to listen to his Sony Walkman.

Joel and Michelle Becker from Chula Vista were there with their two nieces. Michelle Becker said, “I see the little girl in the middle and a woman on the right side, but I can’t see anything on the left.”

Her husband, Joel, said, “Basically, I just see the girl in the middle.”

Michelle said she definitely had seen the little girl the night before, about 11 p.m. Thursday, and that, “during the day (Friday), I believe I saw her dark hair.”

She added, “I know they changed the lights today, but I still see it, so I don’t think it is the lights. In my heart, I really do hope it is the little girl and she is trying to say something to us. I think it is a great strength to her family.”

But police are afraid that the monumental traffic jams of the last two nights, while straining resources, will lead to something more serious.

“I’m afraid that it’s just a matter of time before we have some kind of an incident out there, before someone gets run over or something,” Lt. Merlin Wilson said.

Recognizing the potential for problems, the sign company that operates the billboard Friday changed the three bulbs that illuminate the sign.

If that does not end the nightly assemblies, Wilson said, a representative of Martin Outdoor Advertising has told police that the company is amenable to switching off the lights. (Now, the bulbs automatically illuminate near dusk.)

“Hopefully, someone will buy the advertising, and we won’t have a problem anymore,” Wilson said.

The sign has been blank, covered with a coating of white paint, since mid-January.

The advertising company will fully cooperate with police, said Karen Sanchez, executive secretary for the company, but a final decision about the sign had not been made. “I don’t know what the next step will be,” Sanchez said.

Worldwide, seemingly miraculous “visions”--particularly of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary--appear with some frequency, particularly among Roman Catholics. (The crowd in Chula Vista appears to be mostly composed of Latino Catholics.)

Although most such sightings are quickly debunked and traced to natural phenomena, some--notably historic “apparitions” of the Virgin in Mexico, Portugal and France--have survived initial skepticism and been incorporated into Vatican teachings.

But the apparition in Chula Vista--dubbed the “Miracle on Broadway,” after the major thoroughfare near the billboard--has a unique twist: The image seen is not a religious figure.

Some onlookers speculate that Christ may be attempting to signify his displeasure with earthly sin, such as the violence that took the girl’s life. Does Catholic doctrine allow for such deific messages?

“Perhaps. I can’t totally rule it out,” responded Father Gregory Coiro, a spokesman with the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. “But, for the most part, God uses very ordinary means of getting across his message.”

Catholics “do admit the possibility of supernatural visions,” Coiro noted. “There are a whole bunch that occurred that have been validated, so there’s a basic openness to visions that you might not find in some other religions.”

Beyond its religious connotations, experts noted that the vision may offer a measure of psychological catharsis to a community shaken by the tragedy of the girl’s slaying.

“This provides an opportunity for the general public to witness that pain and express sorrow,” said Tanya Luhrmann, assistant professor of anthropology at UC San Diego. “This becomes a way for people to make reparations for the parent.”

The billboard, near the corner of Broadway and Main Street, has been drawing onlookers since last week, but the crowds mushroomed Thursday evening after extensive coverage in the media.