KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City’s popular haunted houses The Beast and The Edge of Hell opened Friday night to hundreds of people looking for a fright.

“What we had to do in putting in all these new elements and thinking about it, we have really cut back,” said Queen of Haunts, Amber Arnett-Bequeaith.

Full Moon Production, the company that produces the West Bottoms haunted attractions, announced they would require masks for all people inside the haunted houses.

Their cast has creatively added masks to their characters, and visitors must have masks that are not rigid or character masks that confuse the staff.

Other area haunts Macabre Cinema and Chambers of Poe will not open in 2020.

“Temperature checks, finger scans, going through metal detectors and mandated use of hand sanitizer are protocols before visitors can enter the houses. We do all this so people can enjoy the escape and employees have jobs,” Arnett-Bequeaith added.

“We’ve had to be innovative over the decades to be among the best. Things change every year, but this year it is both inside and outside. That’s how we have been creating memories for 30-plus years.”

For opening night, people lined up as early as 4 p.m. to be the first in line to cash in on special ticket prices and the experience.

“It’s like putting me in the Halloween spirit, at least some hope for Halloween,” Anaiya Paris said.

“We have been hoping they would stay open because Worlds of Fun usually does their houses and they closed those down this year,” Ryan Gates said. “So we are very excited to be able to do at least one thing for Halloween this year.”

Another change, these haunted houses will only be open for 18 nights, instead of the usual 35 seasonal days.