Halloween is upon us, witches, goblins, ghosts and bats will be howling and prowling through the night. This unofficial holiday is so much fun for many, but there are always people out there that will try to ruin it.
When choosing a costume, be aware that most trick-or-treating is taking place during the dark hours. Costumes should be light colored or have reflective materials to make them more visible. Flashlights or glow sticks are great additions to make the children more visible to motorists. While masks add to the nature of a costume, they can also limit one’s field of vision. Ensure that little ones can see traffic and their surrounding before committing to your costumes. This will help with identifying traffic and while walking on uneven grounds. Costumes should be chosen that are flame resistant incase they come close to candles or fires.
Kids and their parents enjoy dressing up and going to houses to get treats. It is always preferable to go to home of people you know. Those houses enjoy visiting and seeing the costumed kids they are familiar, and parents will feel more comfortable with acquaintances. Children should always be accompanied by, or supervised by a parent or someone that is over 18 years of age.
While it is awesome to go house-to-house trick-or-treating, it can be safer to attend organized events like trunk or treats, sponsored carnivals, or church activities. These events are well supervised, offer a safe environment that is generally traffic free, and have great treats.
For years people have talked about candies that have been laced with dangerous products. While we have never had one reported or confirmed, it certainly is preferable for parents to inspect the goodies received. Anything unwrapped or that looks tampered with should be separated. If it looks like something dangerous has been done, call law enforcement for further investigations.
We always get questions about when Halloween is permitted. In the City of Newberry, and throughout the County, Halloween is always done on the traditional day of October 31. Whitmire always participates in Halloween on the Saturday before Halloween, October 26. Please check local media outlets and social media sites to locate an organized function near you.
Halloween is all about being aware of enjoying oneself but being safe. As long as you are aware of your surroundings and take appropriate safety measures, you can have a scary evening without incident of injury.
As always, your law enforcement community and first responders are at your service to help make the night memorable and safe.
What will be your choice? Trick or treat.
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