Lombard Police Dept. offers Halloween safety tips, trick-or-treat hours
LOMBARD, Illinois— The Lombard Police Department would like to remind parents that it's that time of the year again--Halloween--and with all the costumes, parties, and excitement it has a very serious side to it; that of child safety.
Halloween in recent years has attracted the attention of police because the harmless fun can become dangerous. The Lombard Police Department wants to help make Halloween a fun and safe experience for parents and children together.
Some Halloween safety tips for parents and children are as follows:
• Plan ahead for a safe Halloween.
• Costumes should be fireproof.
• If face masks are used, make sure children can see well enough through them. Consider the use of make-up instead.
• Costumes should be made of white or very light colored materials. Children's costumes and trick-or-treat bags may be decorated with reflective tape or patches to make them highly visible to motorists.
• Toy weapons and other props, such as swords, broom sticks, hatchets or wands should be made of cardboard or foam. Sharp instruments can prove dangerous.
• Children should wear their regular shoes instead of fancy costume shoes for safety reasons.
• Trick-or-treating should be done during daylight hours. If out after dark, each child should be equipped with a flashlight to prevent falls on porch steps and on sidewalks. Do not use jack-o-lanterns or candles as they may present a danger and are not the safest alternative.
• A responsible adult or teenager should accompany each group of children. Never let children travel down a street by themselves. Parents should walk with them to each house and wait in the driveway or by the door until the children return.
• Instruct children to never enter the home of a stranger or accept rides from strangers.
• Watch for traffic.
• Children should be reminded to always walk while trick-or-treating--never run.
• Try, if possible, to limit the size of each group of children to four or five.
• Adults can help promote safety by keeping front yards well lit.
• Parents should check all “treats” before allowing children to eat them. Only give or accept wrapped or packaged candy.
• Chlidren should stay in their own neighborhood and only go to houses that have porch lights turned on.
• Parents should know exactly the route children are taking and should set a time limit for trick-or-treating.
• To help trick-or-treaters who come to your house, remove all obstacles from the steps, porch, sidewalk and lawns.
• Trick-or-treating should be for young children only. Parties are a good alternative for older children.
Lombard Police Chief Ray Byrne requests that parents limit their children to trick-or-treating on October 31, from 3-7 p.m. The Chief also encourages parents to sponsor and supervise Halloween parties in place of trick-or-treating.
“If anything unusual occurs or you suspect candy tampering, the Lombard Police, 9 1 1, should be called immediately,” said Byrne. “The Police Department has access to a national hotline for information on candy tampering. The important point is to make it a safe and fun Halloween for our children,” he added.