Spotlight – things that go bump in the night

When the question of how to risk assess a ghost hunt was raised on the IOSH discussion forums recently, Connect couldn’t resist the temptation to go along to take a look…

A cursory investigation of Shrewsbury is enough to give you goose bumps. It’s reputed to be one of the most haunted towns in Shropshire and the town centre is crammed with buildings where ghosts are said to roam. Within a few hundred yards we found the haunted railway station, library, castle and several hotels – and the Morris Lubricants works, where we were headed to look for yet more ghosts.

You may be wondering what had possessed us. It all began just a few weeks earlier, when we were browsing the IOSH discussion forums and came across a request from Caroline Walton, from motor lubricants manufacturer Morris Lubricants, for advice on how to risk assess a ghost hunt. We had to find out more.

“Our employees never retire,” jokes David Gumsley, company secretary of Morris Lubricants. “They just stay on and haunt us – it costs us a fortune in 25-year anniversary watches!”

If you’ve got a 140-year-old family firm, you might expect a strong sense of history among your employees. But what do you do if they tell you they think there are ghosts on site? That was the issue facing David and Morris Lubricants’ managing director Andrew Goddard, when cleaner Denise Walker reported some eerie experiences at the company’s offices.

Whatever you believe about the existence of ghosts, Denise’s anxiety was real enough. “There were two approaches we could take,” says David. “When Denise said she was too frightened to go into parts of the building, we could have just told her to pull herself together and get on with it. Instead, we decided to investigate.”

The company brought in Telford-based paranormal investigators It’s Behind You <www.itsbehindyou.co.uk>, who helped put Denise’s mind at rest by identifying three friendly spirits in the office building. But Denise wasn’t the only person who suspected ghostly goings-on – staff in the manufacturing works across the road had also reported unexplained footsteps, sudden draughts and cold spots, doors opening and closing on their own, and even spectral sightings.
 
“The area around the clock tower is reputedly haunted, and local history books have mentioned ghosts in the old warehouse, which was once part of the railway and canal basin,” explains David.

Morris Lubricants called It’s Behind You again, and organised a ghost hunt at the works. Staff were invited to take part in return for a donation to local children’s hospice Hope House, with the company doubling the donations. But the organisers needed to make sure that it was only ghosts – not the ghost hunters – who would be going bump in the night. So, just when she thought her job couldn’t get any stranger, Morris Lubricants IMS manager Caroline Walton found herself responsible for risk assessing a paranormal investigation.

Caroline started by looking for examples of risk assessments for ghost hunts. “They do exist,” she assured us. “But I couldn’t find anything that gave me the level of detail I needed.”

Looking for expert advice, Caroline turned to her fellow health and safety professionals on the IOSH discussion forums. It being a Friday, and this being an unusual request, the forum users rose to the occasion with spirit. “Some of them couldn’t resist giving suggestions like ‘never cross the particle streams’ and ‘it’s always the caretaker’,” says Caroline. “But they also came through with some good advice.”

When we saw Caroline’s request, we couldn’t resist going along to see how the risk assessment worked, and maybe to catch a few ghosts while we were at it.

Ghosts aren’t the only thing to take into account at Morris Lubricants. The material world – including slippery surfaces and flammable liquids – can also present hazards. And while some of the ghost hunters were familiar with the environment, those who worked in different locations would be less sure of where they were – not to mention the IOSH team, who had never seen the premises before. Caroline was leaving nothing to chance.

“First of all, we came up with a list of essential items for everyone to have with them,” says Caroline. “These included a torch, sensible footwear and warm clothing, as well as a sense of humour and a spirit of adventure!”

Since the ghost hunt would take place with only minimal lighting, high-visibility waistcoats were provided for everyone who took part. Everyone was warned that while it would add to the spooky atmosphere, the low lighting would also increase the risk of slips, trips and falls – so each ghost hunter needed to have a torch with them at all times.

The ghost hunters were split into groups, each with a guide who knew the layout of the building, a first-aider and two investigators from It’s Behind You. Teams stayed in touch by radio, and defibrillators were available in case of emergency. Every group had to stay together – even if one of them went to the toilets. Strict signing-in and signing-out procedures made sure nobody was left behind, and if anyone did want to leave early, the entire group had to make sure they left the premises safely.

“It was important for each group to stay together for the entire evening,” says Caroline. “We couldn’t risk losing anyone – we’ve all seen the films, and we know what happens to the person who goes off by themselves!”

We visited five different locations during the evening, including the clock tower, the laboratory and the old warehouse, which stands on the site of the old railway and canal basin. As it turned out, there were very few things going bump in the night. Our ghost hunters used dowsing rods and séances to try to attract the ghosts, and the medium said he sensed a few details here and there, such as accents and temperaments – but if there were any ghosts, they were feeling a little shy.

However, the evening lived up to expectations in other ways. “In the end, this was about having fun while staying safe,” says Caroline. “Staff haven’t been able to talk about anything else for weeks, and it’s really brought people together. It’s been a great success.”