Field of Screams condemned

SALEM, VA - Field of Screams, the most authentic, terrifying House of Horror in the Roanoke Valley, has been closed for the remainder of the 2007 Fright Season. A lost soul remains trapped in the bowels of the ballpark, and clues to her disappearance are few and far between. Last Saturday night, one young woman dared to enter the Field of Screams on her own. When the evening was over, one could only hear her silent screams. "Eerie," said Josh Eagan, Avalanche Director of Horror. "All we found was a video camera that belonged to one of the group members." The video recording of her plight has reached legendary status on the internet. It is currently appearing on YouTube under the following name: "The Salem Ghoul Project."

Upon finding the shoe, the ball cap and the video camera, the Avalanche conferred with City Building and Fire officials to determine the cause of the lost soul.

"It was too scary for me, even with the lights on," said a City official who asked to remain anonymous. "I kept waiting for us to be able to get out of there."

For more than an hour, Avalanche and City officials roamed through the inactive, well-lit Field of Screams, looking for answers to questions that simply had no answers. The never-ending maze, with dozens of dead-ends and false doorways, proved too much for one City official. He left the tour before it really got started.

"There were many issues discussed with the City," said John Katz, Avalanche VP / General Manager. "It was agreed that the Field of Screams was so terrifying that, if someone panicked, they would be unable to exit safely and quickly."

The Field of Screams was in its second year of operation. It featured a never-ending Maze, and endless hallway and the only spinning vortex tunnel in the Roanoke Valley. The Avalanche vow to bring Field of Screams back in 2008, even more chilling than in its current, dormant form.

"Our number one priority is the safety and security of our guests," said Katz. "We are certainly disappointed that the Field of Screams will not remain open for the remainder of the Halloween calendar, but we'll take what we have learned this year and be back next October with a better, safer and scarier stadium."

And as for the lost soul, one can only hope that her tortured spirit will help push the Salem Avalanche back into the Mills Cup Championship Series.