The faint sound of chainsaws and shrill screams echoed from the basement of Sledd Hall on Tuesday night.
Gillian Finklea, a committee member for Haunted Thomas, the haunted house attraction at the dorm, said this year’s house had seven rooms featuring various horror movies and about 20 resident assistants dressed in Halloween costumes.
The haunted house was free and open to the public. Finklea said she hoped more than 150 people would leave with their hearts pounding this year.
Ronnie Pirtle, 23, a criminology senior, and first-time visitor to a campus haunted house, said it seemed like the organizers put a lot of work into Haunted Thomas.
“I’m still sweating,” he said. “Just being down there is creepy.”
UF residence halls will be swinging open the doors to their haunted houses this week, featuring mazes, tour guides and hundreds of Halloween decorations.
Hume Hall’s doors will open at 5:30 p.m. Thursday for members of the Boys and Girls Club of Alachua County. General admission begins at 8 p.m.
“It’s a fun activity that involves the community at large,” said Amber Suleskey, 20, residential chancellor of the Student Honors Organization at Hume Hall.
There will be eight haunted houses, one on each of the four floors in the two Hume buildings.
A $3 donation is requested to enter all eight of the haunted houses. Money raised will benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Alachua County.
Spooky Springs will open Wednesday at 8 p.m. in the activity room of the Springs Complex.
Tabitha Gorman, 21, president of the Springs Area Residential Council, has helped turn Springs into a spooky thriller for three years. She said more than 100 students attended last year and hopes at least 150 will attend this year.
There is no entrance fee for UF students. Popcorn, sodas and candy will be provided.
Sierra Meador, 21, organized this year’s monster bash at Broward Hall.
She said she expects more than 1,000 people between 8 p.m. and midnight Thursday. The house is free and open to the public.
Sixty volunteers from all over campus helped create the haunted house, including members of Humans v. Zombies.
Meador said the Inter-Residence Hall Association provides most of the funds for the event.
“When I became an RA in this area and heard they did a haunted house, I knew I had to get involved,” she said.
For a complete schedule of the residence hall Halloween events, go to irha.housing.ufl.edu/calendar.php.
