Screams and cheers were heard all around the block on Whitney Avenue where trick-or-treaters entered Hamden resident Eric Andrewsen’s house for sweets and scares.
Andrewsen hosted his sixth haunted house on Oct. 31. Lights and music were played in his front yard, grabbing the attention of trick-or-treaters and enticing them to wait for their turn to enter the house.
“I’ve been here a few other years, I think this is my third time,” Shoshana Fleischman said. “The other two were good, but I think this is the scariest.”
The line to get into the house stretched across the block. On average, it took eager participants 30 to 50 minutes to get a chance to enter the house. This gave time for people to admire the decor of the front yard.
“The yard to me is the best,” Judy Tourangeau said, a party caricature who has done work with Andrewsen in the past. “The house is cool too, but I just thought that this was awesome.”
Andrewsen had hired actors, police and extra helpers to make the haunted house safe, scary and fun. Actors would jump out to scare people walking into the house, police would wait inside and outside the house to make sure people stayed safe, and extra helpers would check the lights and use drones to monitor the line.
“The police estimated about 600 people,” Andrewsen said. “They turned away about a hundred more because we would quite literally continue into the wee hours of the morning.”
The haunted house itself was short. Trick-or-treaters entered through the front door, went through two rooms, and left out the backdoor. Though it lasted two minutes, it left trick-or-treaters feeling spooked and energetic.
“I was really impressed, it was really fun,” Caleb Gary said. “It wasn’t as scary as I thought until I went in.”
Although the haunted house is over, Andrewsen isn’t done with making his house into a work of art. Over Thanksgiving and Christmas, Andrewsen will continue to set up his yard to become a big attraction for upcoming holidays.
“My crew and myself we’re happy to bring fear and excitement last night,” Andrewsen said. “We’re looking forward to doing it again next year.”
