What Will Halloween Look Like this Year?
Safety guidelines you and your family should know before celebrating Halloween during a pandemic.
It is almost that time of year again when children dress up, young adults party, and parents steal their children's hard-earned candy. But this year something extremely frightening is in the air that has made us all question whether there would even be that time of year again. The coronavirus has cancelled some of our beloved holidays like Easter and Fourth of July, and many have worried that Halloween would also be cancelled this year. Fortunately, the great efforts by the New Jersey residents to follow the safety guidelines put into place has led Governor Murphy to say that Halloween is a go this year. Governor Murphy has stated that his reason for doing so is because Halloween is more than a fun activity, but a community and family tradition. Although Halloween is a go, precautions still need to be taken to ensure everyone’s safety during this festive holiday. For all activities this Halloween, everyone should still be sanitizing, wearing masks, social distancing, and limiting the number of guests for parties.
Trick-or-treating, attending costume parties, trunk-or-treating, going on hayrides, and attending indoor haunted houses are very popular activities that most individuals do on Halloween, but they also happen to be some of the higher risk activities. Trick-or treaters must wear face masks, as costume masks are not an appropriate substitute. Trick-or-treaters must also social distance from individuals that are not a part of their household. On this note, groups of trick-or-treaters should only include household members.
Staying local is another important regulation on trick-or-treating this year. To keep children collecting candy and the individuals distributing the candy safely, candy should not be distributed by allowing children to dip their hands into a shared bowl. All candy should also be commercially packaged to prevent the risk of contamination. Like always, trick-or-treaters are encouraged to use flashlights or glow sticks when trick-or-treating at night.
For trunk-or-treating, there should be a limit on the number of participants, and there must be enough space to practice social distancing. For indoor and outdoor Halloween parties, the number of people should not exceed ten people, as the ideal number of guests is 4-6. Staggered start times and outdoor locations are also recommended for such Halloween celebrations.
The Department of Health has strongly recommended that people stay out of indoor haunted houses this year. For hayrides, the number of passengers should be limited, and all materials that are shared are to be cleaned and sanitized after every ride. On the same note, corn mazes should also limit the number of individuals allowed in the maze at a time. It is recommended that for all planned events, reservations or tickets be made or sold in advance.
If going out this Halloween does not seem like something you or your family feels comfortable with, there are still various low risk activities that can be done, such as an online costume party, drive-throughs of neighborhoods with Halloween displays, and even Halloween-themed movie nights with family or friends virtually.
With all that everyone has done to allow Halloween to be celebrated this year, we can only hope that everyone follows the guidelines and stays safe, so that we can continue to celebrate more of our favorite holidays and traditions in the months to come.
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