TAPS Ghost Hunters: Live 2009 Halloween Broadcast from Essex County Hospital

Syfy's hit series Ghost Hunters will perform a live Halloween 2009 investigation from Essex County Hospital located in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. The action is slated to begin at 7pm (EST) Oct 31, 2009 and presumable run into the wee hours of the night. Previous live investigations extended to 2 am, but Syfy has not revealed the exact length of this live investigation at this time. Although rumors had been widely circulated that Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson would spend Halloween 2009 with their children and forgo the live investigation, Syfy's announcement is official with a brief intro to the episode posted on their site.

Ghost Hunters are no strangers to Essex County Hospital. In their mid season finale in April 2009, ghost hunters investigated the site, turning up a host of personal experiences. Each member reportedly encountered a number of personal experiences from the sound of footsteps, rolling carts and phantom noises. The thermal camera caught an image shuffling away and several EVPs were captured. The crew agreed the place was just plain "creepy".

It is no wonder. The history behind Essex County Hospital is wrought with pain and suffering and is reported to have claimed the lives of 10,000 souls over a century of operation. Originally purchased by the city of Newark, New Jersey to house the Overbrook Mental Institution to house the mentally ill and criminally insane in 1896, the Essex county Hospital has a long history of pain, violence and death. By 1917, the hospital's boiler system malfunctioned leaving patients with no source of heat. It is reported that some 24 people died from exposure and that some even froze in their beds in a three-week period. Another 32 patients suffered from frostbite before the system was restored.

During the Great Depression the number of patients soared as Americans who were unable to provide food and shelter sought refuge there. Conditions quickly deteriorated in response to over- crowding. Money from the federal government dropped as a result of WWII. Food rations decreased to bare minimum for survival.

Medical practices aimed to cure the ailments of the insane included electro-shock treatments and pre-frontal lobotomies performed under questionable conditions. Diathermy, a technique using high frequency energy to heat deep body tissues often resulted in death. The practice of hydrotherapy to punish the insane for misbehavior and thereby change his behavior was prevalent. The use of violence and physical force by staff was accepted behavior at the time.

Paranormal activity associated with the Essex County hospital include the sounds of a gurney or cart being rolled through the halls, full bodied apparitions, foot steps, voices, whispers and screams.

The live 2009 broadcast holds the potential for a hair raising experience as you watch Jason and Grant and the rest of the team as they make their way through this eerie site wrought with memories of intense pain, unspeakable violence and death.

Syfy will once again provide a live feed to the event and allow the audience to interact with the Ghost Hunter crew posting questions or alerting them to any unusual sights or sounds they may have missed. So, mark your calendars and get ready for a spine-tingling adventure as you watch the Ghost Hunter's Live Halloween event beginning a 7pm (EST) on October 31, 2009.

UPDATED 10/18 at 5:15 pm.
There has just been an interesting turn of events. According to Grant Wilson's twitter (on 10/18), he and Jason will be at home with their kids on Halloween night and the live show is actually an interactive show over the best of Ghost Hunters. He indicates that there will be an announcement soon from Syfy, yet Syfy lists the live event at Essex County Hospital. Although it does not specifically say Jason and Grant (it says Ghost Hunters) will be present, the fact that it features a picture of them certainly leads one to believe they will be there.

You can view Syfy's blurb HERE or follow Grant Wilson and Jason Hawes on twitter to see what they have to say.

I don't know about you, but I'm feeling a bit duped.

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