By Natalie Demaree
Merced Sun-Star
NEW YORK — Officials shut down a two-story house in New York that was illegally converted into a haunted house.
The New York City Fire Department said the family-owned haunted house, A Haunting in Hollis, posed a “serious fire danger” in an Oct. 10 Facebook post.
“We want everyone to enjoy Halloween—it’s a great holiday—but we want them to do it safely,” the department said. “That is a death trap that we came upon, and the members notified our Bureau of Fire Prevention and action was taken swiftly to shut it down.”
The New York City Department of Buildings called the haunted house a “real horror show,” in an Oct. 10 post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
According to the DOB, inspectors found three illegally built staircases, fireproofing material removed and blocked exit routes.
We inspected a real horror show in Queens last week
DOB and @FDNY personnel were called to conduct a joint inspection to investigate reports that a 2-story residential building had illegally been converted into a commercial haunted house, with a literal maze inside.
We inspected a real horror show in Queens last week 💀
— NYC Buildings (@NYC_Buildings) October 10, 2024
DOB and @FDNY personnel were called to conduct a joint inspection to investigate reports that a 2-story residential building had illegally been converted into a commercial haunted house, with a literal maze inside... pic.twitter.com/BVAPoK0037
A Haunting in Hollis said it would issue refunds to any customers that ask in an Oct. 10 post on Instagram.
“We whole heartedly care about the safety and well-being of our guests,” the haunted house’s staff said. “ ... We are expeditiously working on meeting the safety requirements.”
PIX11 reported the haunted house is facing multiple lawsuits, including one filed this month.
According to the Instagram post, the haunted house is looking to reopen Oct. 18 .
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