Girl with heart condition collapses, dies during haunted house visit
Tragedy struck Middletown, Ohio on Friday night as 16-year-old girl died after walking through a haunted house attraction.
Christian Faith Benge, sophomore at New Miami High School, died from a medical condition after visiting the Land of Illusion Haunted Scream Park, the Warren County Coroner's Office reports. The teen was with dozens of family and friends when she collapsed inside one of the parks "haunted houses." Benge was then transported to Atrium Medical center where she later died. An autopsy is currently underway
"She got halfway through (the house) and just collapsed . . . she was almost through it" Christian's grandmother Betty Benge told ABC 9 Cincinnati.
The Land of Illusion Haunted Scream Park includes multiple haunted houses, with attractions titled Killer Klowns, Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate, and Stage of Rage. The park owner Brett Oakley stated that no "injury accident" at the attraction caused the young girl's death.
"It was a very unfortunate situation," Oakley said.
Benge was born with a birth defect and was living with only one lung. Medical officials said that part of the girl's heart was enlarged. "She was like a time bomb," her grandmother Betty told ABC 9 Cincinnati. Christian was described as a kind and lovable person.
