ELYSBURG, Pa. — It does not look too scary at the moment, but on Friday and Saturday nights, the Elysburg Haunted House is the place to be for thrills. In its 44th year, the event is a fundraiser for both the Elysburg and Ralpho Fire Companies. Organizers did not want COVID-19 to stop this tradition in Northumberland County.
"A lot of us are medical and work on the emergency side, so we've been dealing with this since it came out. We figured if we can make this work, let's make it work," said Erik Santor, president of the Ralpho Fire Company.
Santor says this year, all attendees are required to wear masks, and groups are spaced out at least 10 feet apart while they wait in line.
The haunted house is disinfected with a fogger before it opens, and there are handwashing stations throughout the property.
"During the house every hour, we have someone walking around spraying touchpoints, doorknobs, porta-potties. Everything is being disinfected as far as everything that would touch somebody," Santor said.
More than 100 volunteers help with the event, including Ginger Seidel of Elysburg. In addition to scaring people, volunteers are also enforcing safety precautions.
"When they have their mask down, I say, 'Can you put your mask back up, we're really close?' They say, 'Oh, sure.' They're accommodating, too," Seidel said.
Volunteers are no longer touching people or yelling in their direction, but Santor says it's still very scary.
"We've been getting really good comments. This is, by far, one of the best years. We have changed so much. We added more than 14 new attractions this year alone, brand new buildings," Santor said.
This is the biggest fundraiser of the year for these two fire companies. With most of their events canceled this year, it was that much more important to hold this haunted house to bring some sense of normalcy to the community.
The Elysburg Haunted House on Gun Club Road runs through Halloween.