Parental Safety Tips for Halloween

Every Halloween, millions of children across the United States go trick or treating. It’s supposed to be a night of fun but unfortunately many children are injured or even killed because they don’t follow simple safety tips.

Every year in the United States, around 100 people die as the result of their clothes catching on fire.

Burn injuries are one of the leading Halloween injuries but also the easiest to prevent. Here are some tips to keep you and your child safe this Halloween.

Decorations/Indoor events:

• Place all lit pumpkins on a flat stable surface. If possible use a flashlight instead of a candle.
• If the pumpkin will be indoors, keep it away from any flammable material and never leave it unattended.
• Sweep your porch of debris. If an accident occurs, dry leaves and brush can quickly spread a fire.
• Use flashlights instead of candles/flames for any lighting or decoration. With a little creativity you can make your decorations more festive and safer for visitors.
• Keep in mind that paper, dried flowers, and cornstalks are highly flammable and keep them away from any heat source.
• Make sure none of your indoor decorations are blocking exits.
• Check to make sure your smoke alarm is functioning properly. Every year 50% of fire related deaths in the United States involve homes without a working smoke alarm.
• This is also a good time to make sure you and your children have a developed an escape plan in case of a fire related emergency.
• If your children will be at another house or a school sponsored event, make sure both of you know and can easily locate exits.

Costumes:

• Try to purchase costumes and accessories labeled flame resistant or retardant.
• Make sure your child’s costume doesn’t have extended or trailing features. In addition to being a tripping hazard they can ignite easily.
• Look over every part of the costume and make sure that it doesn’t include anything highly flammable. It’s easy for a child to become distracted and a costume can catch fire in a matter of seconds.
• Tell your children to stay away from any open flames and other heat sources.

Make sure kids know the “stop, drop and roll” procedure. If you need a quick refresher:
Stop and drop to the ground covering your face with your hands and roll on the ground to extinguish any flames.