Windsor homeowners' Halloween attraction temporarily halted by complaint to fire officials

A pair of Riverside homeowners had to temporarily suspend their annual charity Halloween spectacle on Thursday after a complaint to the Windsor fire department prompted a visit from an inspector.

And one of the homeownerstook to social media Thursday evening to boo the person who made thatcomplaint.

"Some 'hero' that hates the homeless, the underprivileged, community spirit and fun lodged a complaint with the WFD and, as such, we are closed until further notice while we take care of a few things," Todd Dunfordposted on Facebook.

"We are sorry that some individual with nothing going on in their life felt the need to ruin everyone's good time."

The fire department told Dunford and Nancy McDowall-Dunford to remove hay bales from the haunted house-like attraction which is constructed from four, tent-like portable garages post "emergency exit" and "no smoking" signs, have fire extinguishers on handand allow no more than five escorted guests through the scare zone at any one time.

'My wife she's twisted'

"My wife is out shopping as wespeak,"Dunford told CBC when asked how long it would take to acquire the necessary signage and materials.

"And we're hoping to get this up and running tonight."

The Dunfords began hosting the "home haunt" six years ago "because of my wife she's twisted," Dunford said.

The walk-through experience zigzags for about 60 metres up and down the couple's long driveway.

The pair use pallets to build a maze inside the portable garages and fill it with spooky scenes and animatronic ghouls; they also recruit neighbourhood kids to dress up and frighten visitors.

Thousands of people visit every year,Dunford said, and yes, there is candy for everyone.

Two or three years ago, the Dunford's turned the spectacle into a charity initiative by acquiringa coffin they named the "coffin of kindness" and using it to collect donations of food, toiletries, hats, mitts and scarves for Family Services Windsor-Essex and the volunteer group Feeding Riverside, which helps people who are homeless.

Last year, the donations filled three minivans, Dunford said.

Lined up down the street

Dunford said the most complicated of the fire department's demands will be restricting the flow of traffic through the haunted corridors.

The lineup to enter already extends down the street, he said.

Windsor Fire Rescue's acting chief fire prevention officer, John Smith, was the inspector who paid the visit to the Dunfords on Thursday.

He said he was following up on a complaint made to fire chief StephenLaforet by someone who encountered Laforet in public.

He confirmed Dunford's account of the safety requirements he asked the couple to meet, including the fire extinguishers, exit signs and capacity limits.

Nancy McDowall-Dunford was "outstandingly cooperative and understanding of the situation," he said.

Smith said anyone hosting events inside tented areas needs to use tenting material that is certified to aNational Fire Prevention Association (NFPA) standard.

They should also avoid using dry, highly combustible material such as straw or dried corn stalks.

Electrical cords should be kept away from combustible materials, and there can be absolutely no open flames, including candles.

In addition, Smith said, operators of such attractions need to have a fire safety plan.