Safety preparations for Halloween

SALISBURY, Md. — The Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office is offering safety tips for families participating in Halloween trick-or-treating.

Sheriff Mike Lewis said Halloween sees more child pedestrian accidents than any other day of the year. “We have more kids hit on Halloween than any other night,” Lewis said. “Throughout the year, more kids are hit on Halloween.”

Lewis stressed the importance of staying in groups and sticking to the sidewalks. “We get a number of reports of reckless driving on Halloween every year,” he said.

Local mom Kayla Harrison also shared safety tips, emphasizing that kids should walk while parents stay on the sidelines. “Parents will stay in the car while the kids walk, with the parents following behind in the car. This happens a lot in high-congestion neighborhoods.”

One concern, Harrison said, is the danger posed by kids wearing darker costumes in poorly lit areas. “You’d have these kids in darker costumes, and it makes it really hard to see them. So, lighting is my number one concern,” she said.

Sheriff Lewis also advised staying away from houses with their lights off and recommended carrying glow sticks. He urged parents to check their children’s candy before allowing them to eat it. “If the candy isn’t wrapped or sealed, just be cautious and make sure it’s safe for them to consume,” he said.

Harrison added, “If something looked abnormal or I wasn’t comfortable with it, we just threw it away. A lot of parents use the ‘Switch Witch,'” and idea where they swap out candy for a toy to help eliminate any concerns and focus on the fun.

There is no official curfew for trick-or-treating in Wicomico County, but law enforcement encourages families to finish by 9 p.m.