Nanaimo Paranormal – paranormal activity in Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada. BC Vancouver Island
Nanaimo Ghosts: Old Man Breathing
Location: Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
Ghost report from Sharon on April 17, 2015:
“In the early 1990’s I was living in a small apartment in a medium-sized building in the downtown area. I was a single parent of one child. My partner had recently self-destructed and was returned to prison on the mainland, so we’d been forced to move quickly, hence the small apartment.
A few weeks after we moved in, I was sleeping in the only bedroom. My son was with his grandparents at the time. It was darkish in the room, but there was a bright light on a tall pole in the small parking lot outside the bedroom window. I never saw anything, but I sure heard something! It was the distinct sound of an old man’s breathing! He seemed to be in the room with me! It seemed to be above me, as if he, or it, was hovering above my bed! I was totally freaked out. I quickly left the room and spent the rest of the night on the sofa in the living/kitchen/dining room. As I said it was a very small apartment. Maybe 250-300 sq.ft.
In the morning I asked the resident manager if anyone had ever died in that apartment. He said a man had died, not in the apartment, but in the hospital.
I heard this breathing sound many times. One night a friend stayed the night and the sound was so loud I had to go to the sofa, which meant he had to go sleep in the bedroom. When he awoke I asked him how he slept, he said great, except for that guy breathing so loud! Later on he tried to convince me the sound was somehow travelling through the structure of the building. I wasn’t buying it.
In the apartment beside me a young woman lived, above me was a young man whose job required him to travel a lot, and beside him was a youngish weekend father. None of them had breathing issues. In fact at that time there were no tenants older than 35.
I moved out of there after a few months. Whoever he was, I hope he found the white light, and peace.”
Update from Sharon on Oct 8, 2015:
“I happened to run into a friend yesterday who recently moved out of the building I wrote about in my report. Her name is Barbera. She told me that there were many unusual experiences while she was living there. She said that other tenants reported seeing apparitions, hearing breathing for no apparent reason, and feelings of uneasiness.
Barbera has a friend who used to visit her quite frequently at her apartment. His visits became less often and he wouldn’t stay long. When questioned about this, he said that as soon as he turned the corner to get onto the property, he immediately began to feel fear and dread. This is a man who loves the Lord and does a great deal of good for his community.
Barbera reported at least one suicide in the building, and there is a documented shooting as well, with the RCMP being forced to kill a man exhibiting mental illness and/or breakdown.
I’m not an investigator, normal or paranormal, but it would certainly be intriguing to see someone else visit this location. It is in one of the older neighbourhoods of the city, and the building was built on a lot that had a house or houses torn down to make space for this apartment building. Of course the building has had a large number of tenants over the years, and of course those dozens of people are going to have had illnesses both physical and mental. But when I lived there 20+ years ago I never felt anything dark or dreadful.”
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