Important Halloween Safety Tips for Portland Families

Fall is here, which means children and parents across the U.S. are preparing for Halloween parties and trick-or-treating. What many parents may be unaware of, however, is that Halloween is the deadliest night of the year for children, with pedestrian deaths at their highest on this beloved holiday. Paul Galm Law has gathered some expert Halloween safety tips that will keep you and your family safe this year, whether you’re handing out candy, trick-or-treating with the kids, or taking your pet for a walk.

Pedestrian Accidents

Halloween is a fun night for children and families alike, but the outdoor festivities pose real and dangerous risks. Motorists should heed these tips for driving on Halloween courtesy of AAA:

• Slow down in residential neighborhoods and areas where celebrations are occurring.
• Drive at least 5 mph below the speed limit to give yourself enough time to react.
• Use your headlights, even in the daytime, to make yourself more visible to pedestrians.
• Scan the road for children, looking at front yards, between parked cars, and in driveways where children are likely to gather.

Halloween Safety Tips for Parents and Kids

Parents should implement trick-or-treating guidelines before the big night so kids know what to expect and how to stay safe:

• Encourage kids to travel in groups.
• Accompany young children when going door-to-door so they feel safe around strangers.
• Provide kids and teens with flashlights or glowsticks to light their way and prevent collisions with cars, sidewalks, and other people.

If your tween or teen will be venturing out without parental guidance this year, ensure they know the safety tips for Halloween that are most applicable to them, especially surrounding drugs, alcohol, and riding in cars with strangers. Teens are bound to test their limits, but this is not the night to do so.

Remind youngsters to obey pedestrian safety rules you have already taught them:

• Hold your hand when in public.
• Look both ways before crossing the street.
• Cross the street only within crosswalks.
• Walk on sidewalks against the flow of traffic

These basic tenets of safety can be amplified on Halloween night when there will be more foot traffic than usual on neighborhood streets.

Safest Portland Neighborhoods for Halloween

According to Zillow’s Trick-or-Treat Housing Index, the City of Roses has been ranked as the third-best city in the nation for trick-or-treating, just behind Seattle and San Francisco. Halloween in Portland is especially wonderful thanks in part to five standout neighborhoods that provide the most candy, combined with the least walking and fewest safety risks.

The top 5 Portland neighborhoods where you and your goblins can fill your buckets with treats are:

• Richmond (Hawthorne)
• Northwest Heights (Sylvan)
• Sellwood
• Laurelhurst
• Eastmoreland

Halloween is an exciting night that children (and adults) look forward to every year. Keep your family safe with our Halloween safety tips for kids to ensure frightfully good fun without accidents and injuries. If you have questions about Oregon driving laws or would like to discuss an accident you were involved in, contact Portland personal injury attorney Paul Galm today for a free consultation.