Case Number:  08-001-9

Location:  Orange, Massachusetts

Type:  Municipal Building

Investigator's:  Phil Sheridan, Dennis Peck, Julie Sisson, and Gerry Powling

Equipment:  Audio Recorders, DVC IR Cameras, IR Surveillance Cameras, EMF Meters, IR Thermometers, Motion Detectors

Conditions:  Solar Activity - Quiet, Moon Phase - Waxing Crescent 5% Full, Temperature - 48 Degrees Fahrenheit, Weather - Cloudy with very little wind  conditions

Narrative of Investigation

                The members of Quabbin Valley Paranormal were called upon to investigate a possible haunted fire station.  Not any fire station, but the same fire station that team Director Phil Sheridan works at! 

                There have been numerous stories of possible “ghostly” activity at the Orange Fire Station for many years, long before Phil was hired.  The claims range from unexplained noises, doors opening and closing, appliances turning on and off, and toilets flushing!  Most of these claims were most likely the cause of natural phenomena, like vibrations caused by the numerous trains which go by the station each day, to old plumbing, to old wiring.  But some believe it is the spirit of a former firefighter who absolutely loved being on the fire department.  Many firefighters would actually blame all the activity on this guy!

                 As far as the history of the building, it was constructed in 1936 on the site of the station it was replacing which was built in 1874.  So this property housed the Orange Fire Department since its creation.  There are no records of any deaths in the building or any other tragedy. 

                 The request for an investigation came from one of the full time firefighters that work on a separate shift from Phil.  He claimed that he saw a full body apparition standing in the Day Room of the building when they returned from a call, he was sure there was something there.  There were also recent sightings of a black “shadow man” that would walk in the apparatus bays.  These recent sightings were reported by multiple witnesses.  It would figure that the one person, who had not experienced any activity, was Phil!

  The Team was assembled and included Phil, Dennis, Julie, and Gerry.  Phil, Julie, and Gerry all belong to the Orange Fire Department, and Dennis works for another department full time.  We limited the investigation to those who work in the fire service, as the Station is operational and the group did not want to get in the way of the on duty firefighters. 

                The main goal of the Team was to try and disprove as many of the claims as they could. 

  We set up a full arsenal of equipment.  We had six video cameras running, multiple still cameras, audio recording devices, and other equipment. 

                The first thing we noticed right off is how “noisy” the building is once its quiet and all the lights are out.  The building made all sorts of creeks and bangs throughout the night.  The building is heated with steam radiators, and this was definitely evident.  Large Modine fan heaters would turn on in the bays, as well as an air compressor which would kick in every now and then. 

                 Many trains went by, that would shake the building, and would continue to shake even after the train had gone by. 

                 This place is an electrical NIGHTMARE!  Abnormally high EMF readings were obtained in multiple locations throughout the firehouse, including the dispatch room where the readings spiked at over 40, and isn’t it interesting that this is also the room where the on duty firefighters sleep!

                 The temperature equipment was pretty much useless, as the building as a whole was very drafty, a lot of natural cold spots throughout the building. 

  We determined that a lot of the claims could have a normal cause as opposed to a paranormal cause.  The kitchen cabinets and the linen drawers in the Day Room would open when the train would go by.  We also noticed that the Day Room floors were very uneven, and the linen drawers would open just by gravity. 

                 The Television turning off and on was disproved even before we arrived.  The dispatch room television would turn off and on when radio microphones were keyed up.  We even noticed that Nextel phones walkie talkie would also turn the television on and off. 

                 The toilets were OLD and the plumbing was OLD.  In fact, just before our investigation, one of the toilets was replaced, and there hasn’t been any phantom flushing reported with the new throne.

  Those were the claims we could come up with explanations for.  Now for the ones we couldn’t.  We tried to recreate the apparition that the firefighter witnessed by filming the area it was seen, and using lights, cars driving by, etc, and could not recreate.  The firefighter also said he could tell it was a person, a younger male.

  Then came shadow man.  Wouldn’t it figure that we caught a black mass in one of our still photos taken by Phil.  It occurred in the stairwell going to the second floor.  Phil tried to recreate the shot by placing his finger in front of the lens, adjusting the lighting, etc and could not recreate.  Was it paranormal, who knows, it was not concrete.  It was nice to know though that a possible EVP was captured in that same stairwell.  Investigator Dennis asked if this was the firefighter (mentioned the commonly accepted name) that was here, and a drawn out whisper says “no”.

                We caught many other EVP’s in the apparatus bays, seemingly answering investigator questions, which would lead us to believe that there is possibly an intelligent style haunting here.  But we still ruled an Inconclusive finding there based on evidence.

                So all in all, we did capture some possible evidence to support some of the claims made over the years at the firehouse.  Stay tuned for maybe another visit!