Council employs medium to banish old soul

Kalmar municipality in southern Sweden turned to a medium to help banish an ethereal being from a home for children with learning difficulties, with staff reporting that the uninvited guest has not been sensed since the 2007 seance.

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"It was particularly problematic in the duty room. The unit head in the end got in touch with local medium Pia Palm to solve the problem," said Cecilia Fridh at Kalmar municipality to local Östran daily.

The medium was reportedly paid around 2000 kronor ($250) to hold a seance and drive the spirits out of the home.

"There were some children who were playing in the office and an old man who had lost his way upstairs, what I remember was that he was looking for his wife and I told them to leave. After we had spoken to him we asked his wife to come and collect him so that his soul could rest in peace," said the medium according to the Barometern daily.

The home is apparently not the only public building in Kalmar to have hosted visits by ghostly apparitions in recent years with the 12th century castle and central Kvarnholmen area of the southern Swedish town long rumoured to be favourite hide outs. The home was however seen as something of an odd choice as it was built as recently as the 1980s.

The news of the unorthodox methods to address what has been described by officials as a "working environment problem" has brought national attention to the town in recent days and when The Local caught up with the medium Pia Palm she was keen to play down her role.

"The girls (at the home) have had to put up with a lot, it is time to cool off," she said.

Palm is reported to earn 500 kronor per hour and was engaged for four hours at the home, with employees satisfied that the investment had paid off.

"Since then it has been calm as far as I know," Cecilia Fridh told the newspaper.

The Local has made unsuccessful attempts to reach Cecilia Fridh at Kalmar council for further comment on the case, but our calls have not been returned.