COLORADO SPRINGS – Escape rooms are a popular attraction for people of all ages, but following the deaths of five teenagers inside one of those rooms in Poland, we wondered: just how safe are they?
Escape rooms draw dozens of visitors across Colorado Springs every day.
“See if we could actually get out in an hour,” said Denise Clemens, who was taking on an escape room at the Greatest Escape Games.
They sign up for the thrill of being locked inside a room – but what if they need to get out?
Hollywood portraying its own macabre version of the adventure gone wrong in the movie “Escape Room.”
And in Poland, five teens lost their lives when a fire broke out and they had no place to go.
It’s a real-life tragedy local escape rooms in Colorado Springs do everything to avoid.
Debi Nottingham, the co-owner of Mystery Quests, said she was “sad and shocked” when she heard the news.
Andrea Lacomb, the manager at Greatest Escape Games, said she “thought it was careless,” adding, “we obviously take a lot of precautions to make sure our customers feel safe.”
So what are businesses doing to prevent a worst-case scenario?
“If you don’t have like an emergency key or a door unlocked, you can’t do business,” added Lacomb.
At the Greatest Escape Games, most doors are unlocked.
But even when if they are locked, which is the case for Mystery Quests, there’s always an escape plan.
There’s an emergency key posted by the door along with a map of an escape route and a motion sensor light and owners are also watching each group intently from a security camera up above.
Each location has its own control room with people offering their undivided attention for guests inside the rooms.
A reassuring presence for the thrill-seekers.
“I’m not really concerned because they’re watching you the whole time – totally safe,” added Clemens.
But if you’re unsure about your safety, speak up.
“It’s scary enough to think about locking a door and being in a locked room so therefore ask the questions, what would I do in case of an emergency?” said Nottingham.
And despite the reputation they sometimes get, escape rooms can open the door to an entertaining experience -without the added danger
“We’re all very family friendly, we welcome people of all ages,” said Lacomb.
