Off Beat Characters

The Utah Ghostbusters

A paranormal research society tracks ghosts to prove or dismiss theories.

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Utah Ghostbusters

Utah GhostbustersThe Cache Paranormal Research Society is tracking down ghosts and using technology to prove or dismiss theories.

Have some errant ectoplasm causing you grief? Who ya gonna call… Ghostbusters! Err…make that the Cache Paranormal Research Society. This Utah-based non-profit is a leading investigator of things that go bump in the night. It has checked out sightings throughout the Intermountain West and beyond. Using high-tech sensing equipment and old-fashioned leg work, its team of 14 investigators are looking for…

“I don’t know,” said coordinator Kevin Erickson. He personally confronted the unknown in Ogden. “We were in the Exchange Building when I saw a seven-foot tall cowboy standing in front of me. He had on a white shirt, a duster and a dark hat that covered his eyes. In a few seconds he vanished and I could see the room again. It scared the crap out of me,” said Erickson, who is a software engineer.

Was it a departed spirit? A residual force field? Therein lies the challenge and allure of this work. Erickson said members range from true believers to outright skeptics, but when they are on a site, beliefs are set aside for the sake of collecting evidence. Sites are chosen based on anecdotal reports or a tradition of paranormal activity in the area.

Was it a departed spirit? A residual force field?

Contrary to popular belief, not all investigations take place at night. “Would an abnormal force care if it’s night or day?” Erickson said. Full-spectrum video coverage, audio recorders, hand-held cameras and experimental gadgets (some members are electrical engineers) are deployed. Over the course of several hours everything is noted – air pressure, wind speed, temperature, observer locations. The evidence is then analyzed for events that have no rational explanation. The Salt Lake and Ogden areas have some rich sites to investigate, including Fort Douglas and the City and County Building. Voices, guttural breathing and object movement all have turned up on Society tapes. Perhaps one day the evidence gained by paranormal researchers will result in a conclusive explanation of the phenomenon. Perhaps. Just perhaps.

The Cache Paranormal Research Society can be reached at 435-932-0220 or info@cacheparanormal.com



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