It was Halloween night, and the scariest thing on Robinson Road was Minnie’s 11-year-old son Douglas. He had passed out. With her child unresponsive and unable to walk, Minnie wanted to call an ambulance, but the streets were too packed to get one through. (Editor’s note: pseudonyms are used throughout the story.)

“He was so pale in the moment,” she says. “I’m going to have nightmares of my child laying on the ground for the rest of my life. This could have been life-or-death.”

Minnie and her family were visiting Nightmare on Candy Cane Lane in the Quail Valley neighborhood of Missouri City. That block of Robinson Road is famous for its Christmas and Halloween decorations, the most extensive in the Greater Houston area. One homeowner even admitted to buying 200 plastic skulls a year.

The big displays bring big crowds. Estimates range from 3,000 to 6,000 trick or treaters on Halloween night. Despite the growing size of the event, the residents of Robinson Road have been reticent to codify it into an official Missouri City production. Two neighbors approached the city about a partnership, but balked at having to acquire permits, saying, “it would have taken all the fun out of it.”

A small group of Missouri City police officers were stationed at the street’s entrance, and the residents did spring for porta-potties. Minnie recognized one officer from seeing him near her work and wished him a happy Halloween at the beginning of event.

Minnie, her wife, her ex-husband, Douglas, and her oldest son Brett attended the Candy Cane Lane festivities. Douglas had experienced some episodes of passing out when he was 6, but never received a formal diagnosis. He passed out again in September but seemed otherwise fine.

The group made its way down the right-hand side of the street from the entrance, starting at 5:45 p.m. It was shoulder-to-shoulder trick or treating, which exacerbated Minnie and Brett’s anxiety disorder. Still, the family had fun.

At 6:30 p.m., Douglas complained of being hot (it was in the mid-50s), hungry, and itchy. Minnie gave him some pretzels, but he only felt worse. Douglas lay down on the ground, feeling faint. He felt momentarily better, got up, took three steps, then was on the ground again, complaining that his arms and legs were numb.

“Is he having a stroke? A heart attack? I had no idea what could be happening,” Minnie says. “He’s never had these symptoms.”

The family dialed 9-1-1, but it was clear no ambulance could get to them on the street. Desperate, Minnie knocked on a door, asking for help. A resident agreed to drive Douglas and Minnie out on a golf cart.

“I told my wife and older son to follow after us, but it was so packed that they actually just kept up with us,” Minnie says. “We couldn’t get out.”

Meanwhile, Douglas slipped into unconsciousness. Minnie called her mom and asked her to meet them at a nearby country club. There were sirens in the distance, but after the hour it took the golf cart to exit Robinson, the ambulance was nowhere to be seen. Minnie’s mother was waiting for the ride to Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital, where Douglas eventually regained consciousness.

The Missouri City government is aware of what happened to Minnie’s family and issued the following statement regarding safety going forward: “The City of Missouri values public safety as one of its highest priorities. We are currently assessing many aspects of recently held and/or proposed neighborhood events to determine a future approach that will include organizers, neighborhood associations, and city staff in an effort to safely conduct activities impacting the public. A collaborative and safe experience for our residents, visitors and other stakeholders is the city’s upmost priority for all events.”

Minnie still doesn’t know exactly what caused Douglas to pass out. By the time the family reached medical aid, tests for blood sugar and cardiac activity were virtually meaningless. What they know is that the unregulated crowd made a terrifying time even worse.

“They definitely named it right,” says Minnie. “It’s been a nightmare since the day we went out there. Even if they change the rules, I’ll never put myself in the situation again. I keep thinking of all the elderly people I saw there. Let’s say they had a heart attack. You don’t have an hour. We live in a day and age of mass shootings. Are we supposed to wait for cops to get there on foot? These are real things, and when you’re inviting all of Houston to this little bitty subdivision, you have to have control.”

Robinson Road’s equally popular Christmas event is right around the corner.