CLARKSBURG, W.Va. – Kalani Ghost Hunter visited West Virginia yet again this weekend–first visiting The Old Hospital on College Hill in Williamson on Thursday and then Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in Weston on Sunday. With nearly two million followers on TikTok, Kalani posts live videos of his ghost hunts on the video app as well as posting highlights on his YouTube page. WBOY’s Shayla Klein went on a ghost hunt with Kalani on Thursday and caught up with him about his trip to the asylum yesterday.
SHAYLA: So tell me, how was your trip to the Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum?
KALANI: Well, first thought was that place is massive. We only went in one building, which is the main building, but I didn’t realize until I got there exactly how big [it is]. I want to say it’s 242,000 square feet. It’s huge, but even if you’re not into the paranormal, just for historical reference, there’s so much history there with everything that has happened there and just from it being so old. If you’re a history buff, it’s a cool place to go. But also, if you’re into the paranormal, there’s so much between the history and the paranormal that–I think it’s probably one of the most famous locations in the U.S. I mean, I would put it up in the top five. So I definitely want to go back because one night in that place just isn’t enough.
SHAYLA: Tell me more about how your night went. Any cool stories?
KALANI: So, we had a few weird things happen. On one of my devices that spits out words, the words “cut stream” came in as I was streaming, which was really weird. We had some pretty good activity in the Civil War section of the building–that’s what they call it–with various pieces of equipment going off. The beginning of the night was really active, and then it died out towards the end. Kinda similar to when we went to College Hill.
SHAYLA: So what area would you recommend people check out if they visit?
KALANI: I know it sounds weird, but the energy of Trans-Allegheny is just odd, and I think because there was so much–between all the lobotomies and the treatments they did there. There’s a weird energy there, and you could say it’s the lead paint, but I don’t think that’s all that it is. I mean, you go in the women’s ward, and it’s just eerie. You can feel it. I had goosebumps last night, which I haven’t gotten in a while.
The women’s ward was really cool, and the seclusion cells. The seclusion cells are pretty creepy, but just walking around the place alone at night will probably do in most people.
SHAYLA: How would you compare that to the hospital that we went to on Thursday?
KALANI: Just the massive scale–the scale alone makes it creepier because you enter a hallway, and it’s a straight shot, and it’s super echoey and the way it’s set up–similar to the hospital–your mind can play tricks on you as you’re in there. It’s a lot bigger than College Hill and different in the energy that you feel there, and that’s something that I’ve noticed with anything that deals with lunatics or mental asylums. It just feels different.
It’s hard to describe. I’ve gone to so many different places, but those are the only ones that I feel a little weird at, and I don’t think that it’s all psychological. I don’t know. It’s an interesting place. Even if you just did a day tour, it’s definitely worth checking out.
SHAYLA: Are you going to come back to Trans-Allegheny?
KALANI: Yeah, I think I want to do an overnight there, either alone or just me and one or two other people. Last night we had probably eight. But again, the building is so massive that we didn’t even run into each other. You’ve got eight people running through the building and no one even sees each other because that’s just how big it is. But yeah, I’ll definitely be back.