A Calgary woman says she faced a frightening ordeal during her visit to Screamfest at Stampede Park as the experience left her scared and in need of stitches.
Martha Wault says she made her way through Screamfest’s haunted houses on Thursday night with her husband and some friends. She says they were walking in the Bates Motel exhibit when a hydraulic prop with a large spike affixed, designed to startle guests, popped out of the wall with such force that the spike ripped through her pants and pierced her leg.
“I was standing beside it and it hit me on the leg just above the knee,” said Wault. “I didn’t realize I was cut until I started walking a little bit more and the pain got worse and worse.”
“Once I got out of the haunted house I looked down and there was a huge cut in my leg.”
Wault says she went to guest services for medical attention and the staff directed her to look for a security guard. After unsuccessfully searching for security personnel, the group left Stampede Park and went to an emergency room.
“They had to give me some stitches. I had to get a tetanus shot, just in case, and they told me to keep weight off of my legs,” said Wault. “I’m still in shock that I went to a kid-friendly place and came out with an injury..”
Janneane Wutzke, general manager of Screamfest, says an injury to a guest is a serious concern and staff members conducted an extensive search of the haunted houses to locate what injured Wault. Wutzke says their efforts proved unsuccessful and she will be contacting Wault and inviting her to the site so she may point out what caused her injury.
