You never want to hear about unsafe practices in manufacturing. But at Fear Factory in Salt Lake City, Utah, no one is safe. This abandoned cement factory from the 19th century, which was just named one of America’s best haunted houses two years in a row by the Haunted Attractions Association, has been manufacturing nightmares since 2011.
The sheer size of the attraction alone is noteworthy. At 90,000 square feet, Fear Factory is so vast it requires a signed waver prior to entry. Adrenaline addicts can walk through six different buildings and two underground passageways. It takes more than 100 nightly actors to deliver this “immersive” experience of ghastly special effects and VR plays.
Apparently, Fear Factory has a haunted past, and ghost hunters frequently visit the site for signs of the paranormal. Many employees died in manufacturing accidents before the factory shut its doors permanently. According to its website, “In those days, manufacturing was a dangerous activity, requiring the use of boiling liquid and heavy machinery powered by the grinding of giant gears…the margin for error was small.” Workers succumbed to falling into boiling vats, pulled into revolving shafts, dismemberment, electrocution and more. Makes our manufacturing hearts shudder just thinking about it.
Side scare: We don’t want to brag but looking at this list of other haunted houses that made the cut alongside Fear Factory, a disproportionate amount of them are in our home state of Ohio. Coinkydink—or does the Buckeye State have a discerning taste for blood?
Have a safe and spine-tingling Halloween!