ALBRIGHTSVILLE -- A fundraiser for fallen firefighters scheduled for this weekend in Carbon County has been canceled. Hundreds of people who signed up were only given a week's notice and were told they would not get their money back.
The race is called the Hero Rush. It's an obstacle course race that raises money for the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. Many of the people who planned to do it this weekend are firefighters and EMS workers. But because of the company's financial problems, they won't get that chance.
This is what it's like to participate in the obstacle race Hero Rush. This video from Youtube was shot at last year's race at Skirmish Paintball in Carbon County. It's the same race that Amy McDaniels had signed up for this year.
"Being that it benefits the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, I found it really important, especially since my father William McDaniels, Sr. was a line of duty death, and I was actually running the race in his memory," said Amy McDaniels, of Mocanaqua.
Amy is a volunteer firefighter in Mocanaqua. She signed up for this Saturday's race back in January. But Hero Rush emailed participants last week, saying the race was cancelled.
According to the hero rush web site, the company shut down operations and because of insolvency, Hero Rush doesn't have the money to issue refunds. Graig Hartley signed up and is trying to get his $70 back.
"We`ve contacted my credit card company. They`ve been working on this. They`ve got to make contact with their organization. We contacted the attorney general`s office," said Graig Hartley, of White Haven.
People who had signed up for the race say they only got a week`s notice that the race was cancelled. But people here at Skirmish say they had an inkling that something was wrong a few days before that.
Skirmish owner Paul Fogal spoke to an organizer for Hero Rush early last week.
"He said that they were having some problems on funding and they were looking for investors and he thought that there was maybe a 50-50 chance that they wouldn`t come down, but that he would give me a call," said Skirmish Paintball owner Paul Fogal.
Fogal says he turned customers away for his paintball business this weekend, thinking he'd be busy with the race. Now, it's going to be a slow day. And Amy McDaniels will be working this Saturday instead of honoring her father.
"I'm disgusted. Part of me is upset, but mostly just disgusted," said McDaniels.
Paul Fogal from Skirmish Paintball says anyone who signed up for the race this weekend can come play paintball at Skirmish for free. We could not find a number or email address to contact Hero Rush.