Graveyard's ghost puts the willies up dog walkers

Dog walkers are demanding floodlights be installed at a cemetery because it can be "spooky" at night - and their fears were confirmed by an expert in paranormal activity at Saint Thomas Rest Park, in Crows Nest, New South Wales, Australia. Dozens of pet owners visit the park during the daytime but most are quick to scurry home at sundown, when the area becomes a bit eerie.

Janine Donnellan, from SOul Searches Paranormal Investigations, was called in to test if the park was haunted. Ms Donnellan has been investigating spirits for more than 15 years and has a certificate of Advanced Achievement in Parapsychology from the Australian Academy of Applied Parapsychology.



Her electromagnetic energy measuring equipment lit up when she arrived in the park and led her to a particular area among a cluster of gravestones: "What I did perceive is that there is an active spirit. It's a male in his 30s or 40s. I saw him at one stage crouching behind one of the graves and then over to another. He noticed me and I was trying to get him engaged in conversation but he was very reticent to do that."

Despite the close encounter Ms Donnellan said there was no reason for locals to be afraid: "There wasn't a sense of him being vicious. He's not harming anyone. He was just very inquisitive." North Sydney Council general manager Penny Holloway said the council was yet to establish the best way to help pet owners visit the park at night. "We don't think flood lighting is right. There would be a lot of impact on other properties," she said.