The PANANOLE News: FSU-Panama Student E-Zine

     The FSU-Panama Campus building has been functioning for quite a long while now. Way before our arrival, thousands of students of the Panama Canal College stormed up and down its halls. Has it ever occurred to you that maybe someone may have died inside this ancient building and may be coming back to haunt you, in the middle of your late night Financial Accounting class; or that maybe the spirits of those who jumped off the bridge may have come to seek shelter on our lovely football field? Here, at The Pananole News, we have uncovered more than what the spirits would like us to know, and I assure you, this is much more than just a silly Halloween story.

     The Pananole News interviewed several of FSU-Panama’s security guards concerning the rumors that our campus is haunted. We have kept their names anonymous to protect the sources. Although the interviews were conducted separately, their stories are remarkably consistent. Virtually every security guard reported feeling strong “presences” on our campus.

     During the night watches, several FSU-Panama security guards said that they have heard heavy footsteps in the main building. At times these sound like a large group of students prancing around, particularly on the stairwells. The guards have also reported hearing the sounds of moaning, grumbling, and sighs when there is no one else around, and this is just the beginning of their tales.

     Several guards assured The Pananole News that someone has called their names in the middle of the night—on most occasions when they were the only person on campus. A ghostly voice spoke directly to one member of the security staff, commenting on the guard’s physical appearance. On another occasion, someone, or something, whistled at that same guard during a long, lonely night watch.

     At least two of the guards claim that the “presences” have touched them. In fact, an invisible force once pushed an FSU-Panama guard so hard that it caused this person to fall to the floor. There are also reports of the glass doors inside the main building slamming shut in the middle of the night, as well as of lights going on with no probable cause.

     Over the course of the interviews, we uncovered far too many stories to report them all. However, there are two startling anecdotes that stand out. The first involves a phantom class. In two separate instances, a nanny, who worked in one of the houses across the street, reported seeing a class being conducted on the top floor of the main building, specifically in Room 301. Normally, that would not be alarming. The problem, though, is that the class was taking place between 2 and 3 am.

     “The woman stated that she got up to check on a child who was sick. This happened on two consecutive nights and both times she saw a tall, white American professor with gray hair teaching a class before a room full of students, with the lights on. She said that the way in which the professor moved and the manner in which the students sat absolutely still seemed very unreal, almost dreamlike. But the woman swore that she was telling us the truth,” one of our sources informed The Pananole News.

     The second anecdote centers on a security guard from a private firm who fled his post in the middle night without letting anyone know. The former rector, Dr. Jeremy Brown, discovered that the security person was missing and called the company, which quickly sent a replacement. While looking into why the guard abandoned his post, a member of our regular security staff contacted him to learn what had happened.

     “That guard said that as long as he lived he would never set foot on this campus again. He told me that around midnight he was out walking on the football field, crossing it diagonally. When he was at about midfield he looked toward the fence behind home plate. Standing before it was a priest, all dressed in black. The guard said that the priest called to him with the motion of his right arm. At first the guard thought that perhaps the priest had come looking for help, but when he got closer he saw that the priest didn’t have a face. The poor man ran non-stop all the way to Arnulfo Arias’ monument, where he was able to catch a taxi home,” our source informed us.

     As a result of these disturbing nightly activities, the security staff of FSU-Panama is extra cautious when they are assigned the night shift. For instance, none of them like to go into the main building after everyone has left. At night, they avoid the third floor, particularly on the side of the English Language Program, which according to reports is a hotbed of ghostly activity. Another member of security claims that, “I pray the entire time when I’m on night watch.”

     When questioned about what theories they may have regarding the source of the apparitions, they all cite the possibility that the occurrences are provoked by those who have committed suicide by jumping off the Bridge of the Americas. “After all, we are the closest building to where those poor people died,” said one security member.

     One guard, though, posited another, extremely intriguing theory. “Look out there,” the guard said, pointing in the general direction of the bridge. “That’s the very entrance to the Canal. Tens of thousands died over the years it was being constructed. Maybe their spirits are still around. Also, I believe this school may have been built over a former graveyard.”

     We asked one FSU-Panama professor, Dr. Silvio Sirias, about the possibility of FSU-Panama being built over a cemetery. “That’s possible,” said Dr. Sirias. “In the book The Path Between the Seas, which is about the building of the Canal, David McCullough writes that in those times the authorities used to house black Canal workers in La Boca. At one point the land we are on was home to a large black community. They probably had a church or two, and definitely a cemetery. Diseases, from malaria to the bubonic plague, hit that particular population very hard. Of course, thousands of workers died during construction accidents as well. At one time, according to McCullough, La Boca was marshy. Eventually the Americans displaced the blacks and filled in the swamps with dirt extracted from the excavations. To do that, they had to pour enormous amounts of soil over everything, including graveyards.”

     Not every member of FSU-Panama’s security staff believes that the campus is haunted. “There’s a rational explanation for everything that takes place here. This building is very old, and old buildings tend to shift around a lot. Now, I do admit to being a bit spooked at times, but then I see raccoons rummaging around. At least on one occasion they broke into an office on the third floor. And they make tons of noise. I think they’ve found a way to get into the attic as well. Plus, there are thousands of bats that have their nests up there. Everything can be explained.”

     We questioned others members of the FSU-Panama community about whether they believed in ghosts, and if they thought the campus was haunted.

     Valerie Laboy, a student, said, “I don’t know if I believe in ghosts, but I don’t believe that the campus is haunted.”

     “I believe in spirits, but not in lost souls that wander about. And, no, I don’t believe FSU-Panama is haunted,” said Breyda Ortega, another student.

     Dr. Adolfo Leyva, an FSU-Panama professor, said, “I haven’t made up my mind yet about ghosts. However, if they do exist, then this campus is definitely haunted.”

     Perhaps the statement that best reflects public sentiment comes from Mr. Carlos King, who works with FSU-Panama’s English Language Program, who said, “I’ve experienced many strange things in this building, but I’ve never chalked it up to the supernatural.”*

*I want to thank Dr. Silvio Sirias for his help in writing the article.