Trick-or-treating safely

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Tammie Ramsouer
  • JBER Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --  Halloween is the time of year when children dress up as their favorite character in hopes of collecting as much candy as they can.

Yet, Halloween night is also the time of year when safety is extremely important. There are many precautions parents and children should follow to enjoy a safe and fun Halloween.

Children, 11 and under, must be accompanied by another child at least 12 years of age, or supervised by a parent or adult.

The speed limit is 15 mph in residential areas, and drivers should be extremely cautious for children in those areas--especially during trick-or-treating hours.

With the long hours of darkness and the cold weather during October here in Alaska, parents and children should have flashlights, hand warmers and warm clothing while individuals trick-or-treat, said Tech. Sgt. Mariko Thomas, 673d Security Forces Squadron.

Children's costumes should allow them to see and their costumes should not drag on the ground, preventing slips and falls while trick-or-treating, said Michael Lundvall, 673d Ground Safety Office administrator.

Although children may have proper reflective gear on their costumes, running from house to house, walking diagonally across the road or between parked vehicles is very dangerous and children must be aware of their surroundings, Lundvall said.

"Use sidewalks and crosswalks when crossing the road or at intersections," Thomas said.

Children and their parents can trick-or-treat Oct. 31. from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.

If there are problems, such as children being bullied for candy while trick-or-treating or any safety violations, contact one of the many Security Forces members or volunteers that will be patrolling the housing areas wearing police vests on Halloween night.

There will be between four and 11 673d SFS members and volunteers patrolling each housing area.

For residents handing out candy to the trick-or-treaters, their porch lights must be lit to let children know where to receive candy. If parents are worried about their children's candy, the Air Mobility Command Passenger Terminal will offer courtesy X-ray of candy between 6 - 9 p.m. Halloween night.

Base housing residents must take down holiday decorations within two weeks of Halloween. Pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns are not allowed outside until the day of Halloween during the hours of trick-or-treating and must be removed the same night. If residents do not remove their gourds, the wildlife will be attracted to it and leftover decorations could become a free meal, which is not safe for residents or the animals. Alaska law prohibits the feeding of wild animals such as moose, bears, foxes or wolves.