It’s October! The scary season! A month of haunts, costumes, and candy, all leading up to the most chillingly fun holiday of the year: Halloween!
Whether you’re a parent of kids who will be trick-or-treating or a homeowner handing out treats to the goblins who ring your doorbell, Halloween is a wonderful example of a holiday that’s fun for the adults as well as the kids.
We hate to dampen the mood, but you need to be aware that Halloween can be legitimately scary for parents—and not the good kind of scary. Research by the Journal of the American Medical Association found that the risk of pedestrian fatalities is 43 percent greater on Halloween night than any other night of the year.
The only things that should be scary this month are the costumes and the haunted houses! That’s why Halloween safety, whether your kids are trick-or-treating in Wheeling, Moundsville, St. Clairsville, or anywhere else in the Ohio Valley and southwest Pennsylvania, is so important. Here are some tips for keeping kids safe on Halloween.
Safe Trick-or-Treating
Most trick-or-treating occurs during twilight (sunset in Wheeling on Oct. 31 is around 6:20 p.m.) or early darkness. Although it won’t matter as much when Halloween falls on a weekend, rush hour at this time puts more cars on the road. Even when parents are accompanying their kids trick-or-treating, crossing streets and walking along roads that don’t have sidewalks increases the risk of something tragic happening.
But that shouldn’t stop your family from trick-or-treating. Here are some things you can do to keep you and your kids safe on Halloween (or whichever day your town is scheduling trick-or-treating):
Give flashlights to your kids to carry as they cross streets or walk along roads. Don’t rely on the lights on smartphones to be visible—they aren’t designed to make you visible. Small handheld flashlights can be easily pointed and are more easily seen by drivers. (Plus, if you stand on the sidewalk while your kids go to a door to get candy, you can shine your flashlight in their faces to remind them to say “thank you” if they forget …)
Be extra visible by adding reflective strips to your kids’ costumes and giving them glow sticks to wear around their necks or wrists.
Cross at crosswalks instead of the middle of the block. It’s tempting for kids to run back and forth across the street to go to a house where they see lights on, but drivers might not be as vigilant for pedestrians away from the corners, especially if kids are darting out behind parked cars.
Encourage your kids to take off masks when walking along roads. You don’t want to take away from their great costumes, but masks can limit peripheral vision, which isn’t good when walking next to traffic. They can always put the mask back on when they ring the doorbell to sufficiently impress homeowners!
Similarly, be extra aware if your child’s costume restricts any movement, such as a dress on a princess (and every year, there are plenty of princesses!) or a cloak on a Grim Reaper. Even without traffic, tripping over a curb can hurt—and Halloween is not the night you want to go to the emergency room. Remind them to watch their step and not run.
Hold your kids’ smartphones so they aren’t tempted to be checking them while walking along roads and crossing streets. This advice extends to parents: Keep your phone in your pocket, only taking it out when you’re away from traffic. Take plenty of pictures—just when it is safe to do so.
Older kids might want to trick-or-treat on their own, which is understandable, because what middle schooler wants their parents with them on Halloween? Reinforce all the Halloween safety rules already mentioned, and add a few:
Give them a curfew to be back home. The later Halloween gets, say after 8 p.m., the fewer commuters on the roads, replaced by less careful teenagers and college students. Provide a firm curfew, and even offer to let their friends come over and watch a scary movie instead of being on the streets.
Hold them to the same Halloween smartphone rules you’re following yourself: Phones should be pocketed when they are near traffic. Tell them it’s OK if they don’t answer your call or text right away—they should do so only when it’s safe.
This may seem like a no-brainer (zombie pun intended!), but remind them not to go into the home or backyard of anyone they don’t know. Also, tell them to always stay with their group of friends and don’t split up.
Halloween Safety for Drivers and Homeowners
Halloween safety is everyone’s responsibility—not just trick-or-treaters and their parents. No one wants kids to get hurt on Halloween, and you don’t want to deal with the consequences if someone is injured by your vehicle or on your property. Here are some tips that can help keep everyone safe on the spookiest night of the year.
Driving
If you are driving anywhere near trick-or-treaters, slow down, turn your headlights on (even before it gets fully dark), and be extra vigilant on side streets, pulling into driveways, and even at crosswalks. Never assume those kids won’t run into the street, even if they are with their parents. And if you don’t need to drive anyplace during peak trick-or-treating hours, stay home.
Your Home
You want the front of your home to be as inviting as it can be for trick-or-treaters, but you also want it to be safe. For example, an orange porch light may be wonderfully eerie, but it also can make it more difficult to see as you climb stairs.
Go back to a white light for a couple hours, keep your porch clear of obstacles (e.g., pumpkins should be off to the side), and keep any electrical cords off the walkway where someone could trip over them. Also, if you have any mechanical decorations that deliver jump scares, make sure they aren’t scaring anyone standing on your steps.
Your Dog
Some dogs are mellow when the doorbell rings dozens of times a night, and some will go nuts. Protective or agitated dogs may try sneaking out of the front door and could bite or knock down trick-or-treaters—and you could be liable for injuries.
You know your pup best, but err on the side of caution: Consider keeping your dog(s) away from your front door, maybe in another room or in a crate, while you are handing out candy to trick-or-treaters. Or, set up shop outside, on your porch or driveway, so that your doorbell isn’t being constantly rung.
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From all of us at Bordas & Bordas, have a safe and truly boo-tiful Halloween!
