Trick-or-Treating Safety Tips
For parents: Adults should accompany young children and older kids should travel in groups.
Children should wear light colored clothing short enough to prevent tripping. Adding reflective tape to costumes and outer garments will increase visibility.
Carry and use flashlights or glow sticks after dark.
Visit homes you know and stay within your neighborhood. Together with your child, map out a safe route so you know where they will be. Remind them not to take short cuts through backyards, alleys or fields.
Remind children never to enter a stranger’s house or vehicle.
Encourage neighborhood block watches and citizens’ groups to patrol the neighborhood.
Discourage children from eating their treats until they get home.
Closely check all treats at home is a well-lit place. Remove all opened candies or treats not in their original wrappers. Inspect all fruit and homemade goodies.
Report any suspicious or criminal activity to the police immediately.
For motorists: Be aware of when your neighborhood/community will hold trick-or-treat. Don’t use your cell phone while driving through neighborhoods. A single distraction could lead to a tragedy. Pay extra attention to the side of the road while driving.
Do not pass vehicles that have stopped in the roadway. They may be dropping off children.
Make sure drivers can see you. If you’re driving a group of children, but you’re staying in the running vehicle at the curb, be sure to put on your hazard lights to alert other motorists.
Make sure drivers can see the children. Give the children flashlights or use reflective tape on their costumes. This will help children make their way in the dark and ensure that drivers see them. Be sure your children know how to cross a street. Instruct children to look both ways before crossing the street and to cross only at corners or crosswalks.
-Source: Delaware Co. Sheriff’s Office/Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission