Owners perplexed by haunted hospital burglary

Caretakers of the now-defunct St. Ignatius Hospital are sometimes apprehensive of the ghosts that purportedly reside within the building, but uninvited visitors like burglars have added another layer of unease to the eerie institution.

Guardians of St. Ignatius were set back over the weekend when four individuals broke into and stole from the hospital. Burglars allegedly helped themselves to thousands of dollars’ worth of ghost detection equipment, as well as items from the gift shop. The incident impacted ghost tours scheduled for the week, and preservation projects planned for the near future.

Whitman County Sheriff Brett Myers said a woman and three men were accused of burglarizing St. Ignatius last Friday evening. He said a little over $3,000 worth of ghost monitoring equipment was taken from the institution, and items from the gift shop. K2 meters and EDI meters used to measure electricity, temperature-measuring sensors, motion sensors, batteries, spirit boxes and batteries were reportedly stolen.

Individuals also vandalized the building upon their entry. Myers said they allegedly removed wood on the side of the hospital to get in and smashed fixtures on their way, looking for the equipment.

Austin Storm, owner and caretaker of the hospital, said he didn’t know the building was burglarized until the next day when items used for a booked ghost tour were missing. He added they were still able to continue the ghost tour, but people’s experiences were affected with the lack of equipment.

Storm said he knew the institution would have a raised profile after recently being featured on the Travel Channel’s “Ghost Hunters.” He and other caretakers thought the show would strike interest in the preservation work that had gone into saving the building, instead of attracting uninvited visitors.

“We’re very disheartened,” Storm said. “We don’t blame anyone for being interested in the building. We’ve put a lot of work into trying to preserve the building and give it a new life. It’s just upsetting when we’re on the receiving end of people trying to undo our progress.”

Though Storm is flustered by the recent events, he’s optimistic police may be able to catch whoever is responsible for the burglary and recover what was stolen. Myers said the department is actively investigating the incident and has a few leads deputies are following up on.

Some funds used to preserve the building come from grants, but the majority of revenue gathered comes from the hospital’s ghost tours, Storm said. He added a lot of equipment that was taken goes into running the haunted tours, and it’s both expensive and takes a lot of work to acquire. Storm will have to purchase new equipment if items stolen can’t be recovered.

“It really takes the wind out of your sails,” Storm said. “So much work goes into doing the preservation, and then you have to stop and fix things that weren’t broken or buy equipment that you already had. … It really has a mental toll.”

Funds that would have gone toward fixing the building will have to be used on reacquiring equipment to support its haunted tours. Storm said it will be a setback for anticipated projects they’d like to do on the building.

This experience has made Storm even more grateful for the people who support St. Ignatius and preservation work they do.

“Even though this is frustrating and discouraging it does put into high relief that there are people who are supportive,” Storm said. “We’re really grateful for the people who have gone on tours and are interested in St. Ignatius. And, for people who are glad the building is being saved rather than falling down.”

Storm said many people have a connection with the building. St. Ignatius was a functional hospital until the 1950s, and anyone born in Whitman County before that time would have been born at the institution.

“We are grateful for how many people who care about St. Ignatius,” Storm said. “The building is so important to the people in the community, and we’re so glad we can preserve it and have it here for the people who care the most.”