Rummaging sounds and a hair pull in USS Enterprise switchgear rooms
A caller from Tampa, Florida, who says they joined the Navy in 1980 as a nuclear power electrician, describes standing mid-watches in the switchgear rooms of the USS Enterprise after being told the spaces were haunted. The caller reports hearing someone rummaging in a back room that turned out to be empty. Later, the caller says, they felt their hair yanked while they pretended to doze off on watch. The caller ends by saying others on the ship could verify it and that they personally were never much bothered.
This clip comes from the source recording. AI chose where it starts and ends, so it may start or end a little early or late. The word-for-word transcript is not published. You can hear the source recording on the Internet Archive (file “Ghost to Ghost 1998.mp3”, starting at 52:41). Is this you, or someone you know? Ask for a correction or removal.
The story as told
The caller, who gives their location as Tampa, Florida, says they joined the Navy in 1980 as a nuclear power electrician and were assigned to the USS Enterprise in 1982, after a three-year refit. The caller reports that the men who assigned watches asked whether they wanted a mid-watch in five and six switchgear and mentioned there was a ghost there. The caller says they did not much believe it. Standing that mid-watch, the caller reports hearing someone roaming around in a back room, a small office holding gear pullers and electrical equipment. It sounded like someone opening and closing drawers and moving around. The caller says there is only one door in and out, visible from the switchgear, and that when they opened it there was nobody there. The caller briefly wondered if someone was messing with them. The caller says they later learned of another ghost said to haunt number two and three switchgear. The caller was told these were men who had been vaporized by opening disconnects while energized, which drew an arc and a fireball. The caller reports one crewman told them you cannot sleep in two and three switchgear because the ghost will keep you awake. The caller describes the presence as acting like a guardian that made sure men did not fall asleep on watch. Wanting to test it, the caller says they pretended to nod off and felt as though someone grabbed the back of their hair and yanked their head. Asked whether it could have been imagination, the caller says no. The caller also reports that another man, a conventional electrician not in the caller's group, left his post screaming and never stood watch there again, without saying what happened. Asked about the electrical system, the caller mentions 450 volts and describes eight turbine generators and eight reactors. The caller says they were never really scared by it.
Reported events, in order
- 0:17
The caller says they joined the Navy in 1980 as a nuclear power electrician and were assigned to the USS Enterprise in 1982.
- 1:12
The caller is asked whether they want a mid-watch in five and six switchgear and is told there is a ghost there.
- 1:48
On watch in five and six switchgear, the caller hears someone roaming in a back room and what sounds like drawers opening and closing.
- 2:13
The caller opens the single door and finds nobody inside.
- 2:25
The caller learns of a second ghost said to haunt number two and three switchgear.
- 2:42
The caller is told the ghosts were men vaporized by an arc fireball from opening energized disconnects.
- 3:16
The caller reports a crewman saying you cannot sleep in two and three switchgear because the ghost will keep you awake. The caller describes it as a guardian.
- 3:55
The caller pretends to nod off and feels as though someone grabs the back of their hair and yanks their head.
- 4:25
The caller reports that another man left his post screaming and never stood watch there again.
- 4:58
Asked about the system, the caller cites 450 volts and describes eight turbine generators and eight reactors.
Claims
Each claim is labeled as something the person telling the story noticed (observation), what they made of it (interpretation), something others told them (hearsay), or something the host said (host statement).
- observation· 1:48
The caller heard someone roaming and what sounded like drawers opening and closing in a back room of five and six switchgear.
- observation· 2:13
Opening the single door, the caller found nobody in the room.
- observation· 3:55
The caller felt as though someone grabbed the back of their hair and yanked their head.
- hearsay· 2:42
The caller was told the men who haunt the rooms had been vaporized by an arc and fireball from opening energized disconnects.
- hearsay· 4:25
The caller was told another man left his post screaming and never stood watch there again.
- interpretation· 3:35
The caller describes the presence as acting like a guardian that kept men from sleeping on watch.
- host statement· 3:23
The host says people who die suddenly and tragically seem to remain.
Scores, with reasons
An AI model gave these scores using a fixed set of scoring rules (scoring-v1). They are editorial judgments and rough guides, not the odds that anything paranormal happened. How scoring works.
A firsthand, fairly specific story with a concrete setting and sequence. But it rests on the caller's own perception alone and includes claims the caller heard only from others.
Evidence for and against
- Firsthand witness speaking about their own watches.
- Concrete details: the 1982 assignment, five and six switchgear, two and three switchgear, 450 volts.
- The caller separates hearing rummaging from concluding it was a ghost.
- Some elements are hearsay that others told the caller.
- Other explanations (equipment noise, a head drop while dozing, a prank) are not fully addressed.
- The caller's name is not given.
- The labels showing who is speaking are inconsistent in the transcript.
- 0:17
- 3:55
What the model inferred (not said on air): Closeness to events and specifics score well. Other explanations and calibration score in the middle because a head drop while dozing and machinery noise plausibly fit.
Only the caller's word is present. Other witnesses are claimed but none speaks, and no physical evidence is offered.
Evidence for and against
- The caller names EE30 personnel and a crewman who could allegedly verify the story.
- No second witness speaks on air.
- No photograph, recording, or document was examined.
- The transcript does not show whether any EE30 listener ever responded.
- 2:33
What the model inferred (not said on air): Claimed witnesses who could back it up place this in the “other witnesses claimed” range, well below any examined evidence.
There are unsettling elements: an empty room with rummaging sounds, a yanked head, and a man leaving his post screaming. But the caller sees the presence as a guardian and says they were not scared.
Evidence for and against
- Rummaging in a room that turns out to be empty.
- A hair pull on watch.
- A crewman reportedly fleeing his post screaming.
- The caller describes it as a guardian and says it didn't really scare them.
- Tone and delivery carry no weight under the scoring rules.
- 3:55
- 4:25
What the model inferred (not said on air): A haunting in a technical workplace, with physical contact, rates above mildly eerie. No escalation or harm keeps it moderate.
A haunting aboard a ship is familiar. But the switchgear-room setting, the explanation of vaporized sailors, and a hair pull tied to duty give it distinctive detail.
Evidence for and against
- Specific setting: the switchgear rooms of a nuclear carrier.
- The idea of a guardian that keeps you awake.
- The claim that the ghosts came from men vaporized by an arc.
- Rummaging sounds and being touched are common motifs.
- No comparison with the rest of the archive is available here.
- 3:35
- 2:53
What the model inferred (not said on air): A familiar frame with a distinctive setting and details places it above a stock ghost story.
Scoring confidence 0.70 · analysis confidence 0.75 · checked against outside sources: no · evidence available: The caller's firsthand story; Other witnesses claimed, not on air; No documents or recordings. The originality score blends the model's score (72) with how rare the story's details are across the archive. This method is still provisional.
Ordinary explanations to consider
These are possibilities only. None is a finding about what happened.
- Noise from electrical or mechanical equipment in the switchgear space was taken for rummaging. · The caller describes the room as holding gear pullers and electrical equipment, and says it “sounded like” drawers and movement. The caller did not see anything.
- A muscle jerk or head drop as the caller drifted off produced the feeling of their head being pulled. · The caller describes the aim of pretending to nod off on watch as [quote withheld] before feeling their hair yanked.
- A crewmate played a prank. · The caller says [quote withheld] though they report the single-door room was empty.
What stands out
The setting is the electrical switchgear rooms of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. The reported contact is a hair pull that the caller sees as a guardian keeping men awake on watch. It is tied to a specific technical workplace and duty, not a haunted home.
Related stories
Matched by shared recurring details, categories, and wording.