October 24, 2010 HALLOWEEN SAFETY TIPS www.privateofficer.com
HALLOWEEN SAFETY FOR CHILDREN-TEENS
HALLOWEEN SAFETY FOR CHILDREN-TEENS
Courtesy of PrivateOfficer.com
AUDIO VERSION- www.blogtalkradio.com/securitypolicenews
Kids love Halloween! They get to dress up and get free candy! What a perfect holiday! Give your kids some precious Halloween memories that they’ll have for life.
Some of you kids already know things that you can do to be safe, like how to cross the street, not to talk to or go with strangers and things like that. But we adults know how exciting Halloween can be and that can make you forget to be careful.
Here are some tips that we have just for you kids, to help keep you safe on Halloween night! Some of these ideas are called “common sense” ideas that mean that they are things that you should know and use every day in life. You are never too young to learn!
Never, ever go into a stranger’s house or even ring their door for treats unless your parents are with you and say that it’s okay. There are some people in life that aren’t very nice to kids and you have to be careful. Always make sure that your mom or dad is within sight when you go out trick-or-treating.
Be careful when you cross a street. Make sure to look in both directions and make sure that there are no cars coming. If you have a little brother or sister with you, take their hand and help them get across the street, too. If the street has a stop light, wait until the cross walk light tells you that it’s okay to cross now, but still check before you cross, look both ways.
If you are an older kid or young teen, and going out with friends, make sure that your parents know where you are going and who you are going with. This may seem like a pain but they are your parents and they love you. They just want you to be safe.
If you can drive and are taking a bunch of friends to a party, make sure that you have enough gas to get there. You don’t want to run out on a dark street, all alone, like a bad horror movie!
If your parents give you a curfew, be home when they say. It builds trust between you and them and they are doing it for your own safety. If you are going to be late, call them and let them know.
Vandalism is never cool! Throwing eggs at cars and houses is not cool. Someone has to clean it up and it could be you, if you get caught. You can also be arrested and punished as a juvenile. So, don’t think that it’s fun only if you can get away with it. It’s never the right thing to do! Think about how you would feel if someone did that to your house and how bad it would make you feel.
Hurting animals is never acceptable behavior! Some people use Halloween as an excuse to hurt cats and that is just wrong! Not only is it illegal in most places to hurt or torture animals and punishable by law, you should never hurt a helpless living thing.
Have fun on Halloween but keep it safe, have some good, clean fun and your parents will trust you for many Halloweens to come! Showing them how responsible you can be will give you a feeling of pride and make them see just how adult you really are.
HALLOWEEN SAFETY FOR ADULTS
Parents of trick-or-treating kids can get so caught up in the fun themselves that they might forget some simple safety ideas that could keep everyone out of trouble. Having a fun and safe Halloween will make it all worth while!
Kids love Halloween! They get to dress up and get free candy! What a perfect holiday! Give your kids some precious Halloween memories that they’ll have for life.
If you take your kids to a sponsored event, like a safe Halloween thrown by your church or community center, make sure to keep an eye on them at all times. Even though it seems less dangerous, you are still in a strange environment full of people that you don’t know. All it takes is a minute with your back turned to find your child gone.
Cell phones are everywhere now! Everyone seems to have one, they can be so affordable. Make sure that your child has a pre-programmed cell phone with him/her if they go out on Halloween night! Make sure that all important numbers are already there and ready for use.
Below are more common sense tips that can help adults keep their kids safe.
As bad as it sounds, this is just a fact of life now. Get on the internet and check your local state website for sex offenders. Almost every state has one; just do a search for your state sex offender site. Look up your zip code and it should have a list of registered offenders in your area that includes street addresses. Make sure that your kids stay away from these houses!
Know the route your kids will be taking if you aren’t going with them. Let them know that they are to check in with you every hour, by phone or by stopping back at home. Make sure that they know not to deviate from the planned route so that you always know where they will be.
Trick or treating isn’t what it used to be. In most cities it’s not safe to let kids walk the streets by themselves. Your best bet is to make sure that an adult is going with them. If you can’t take them yourself, see if another parent or two can.
Help your young child pick out or make a costume that will be safe. Make sure that its fire proof or treated with fire retardant. If they are wearing a mask of any kind, make sure that the eye holes are large enough for good peripheral vision.
Know what other activities a child may be attending, such as parties, school or mall functions. If they are going to be at a friend’s home, get the phone number and make sure that you’ve met the parents.
Make sure you set a time that your kids should be home by. Make sure they know how important it is for them to be home on time or to call immediately if something happens and they are going to be delayed.
Kids will be kids. Explain to kids of all ages the difference between tricks and vandalism. Throwing eggs at a house may seem funny but they need to know the other side of the coin as well, that clean up and damages can ruin Halloween for everyone. If they are caught vandalizing, make them clean up the mess they’ve made.
Some sick people find Halloween a great night to hurt cats. Explain to your kids that animal cruelty of any kind is not acceptable. Kids may already know this one on their own but stress the point that it’s not acceptable behavior. Make sure that they know that harming animals is not only morally wrong but punishable by law and will not be tolerated.
Serve your kids a filling meal before trick or treating and they won’t be as tempted to eat any candy before they bring it home for you to check. Check your local grocery store or craft store for Halloween cook books full of tasty treats on a horror theme for both kids and adults.
Make sure that if your child is carrying a prop, such as a scythe, butcher knife or a pitchfork, that the tips are smooth and flexible enough to not cause injury if fallen on. Make sure that costumes won’t get in the way when they are walking, which could cause them to trip.
Teach your kids about not getting into strangers cars or talking to strangers, no matter what the person says to them. Explain to them as simply as you can that some adults are bad and want to hurt children, that they should never go into a house that they don’t know, get into a car or go anywhere with a stranger. Also, tell them what to do should this happen, to scream as loud as they can to draw attention and to run away as fast as they can to someplace safe.
Be sure to show your children know how to cross a street properly. They should always look both ways before crossing the street and should only cross at corners or crosswalks. Make sure that if you have more than one child, they know to take the hand of the younger child when they cross a street.
Make Halloween a fun, safe and happy time for your kids and they’ll carry on the tradition that you taught them to their own families some day!
SECURITY-POLICE OFFICER SAFETY TIPS
Unfortunately, during the past six years, four security officers and two police officers have been killed in the line of duty while trying to protect property from vandalism and responding to what should have been “minor nuisance calls.”
There are some safety issues when working any overnight shift but on Halloween, the dangers more than triple for public safety personnel.
Here are a few tips that may keep you safe!
Above all else, use extreme caution, think before you react and be completely aware of your surroundings.
Never chase vandals, candy thieves or trespassers into unknown and darken areas alone, period!
Pranksters already hyped up on the ideas of the freaky, mischievous and naughty night of “fun” may turn on you trying to scare you off causing injury or even death.
Minor crimes are not worth the risk of life and limb.
Juveniles on this night are more likely to be armed with knives, pepper spray or guns as they set out to cause neighborhood chaos and commit destructive and/or assaultive acts all in the name of fun.
Many if not all children, teens and some adults will be dressed in some type of a costume, disguise or other identity altering wear-male up or mask making it harder to clearly identify risks, danger, identities and intents.
Use maximum caution approaching anyone for any reason and stay your distance, alert and on-guard until you can clearly identify threat levels and subject identity.
Halloween has also been used as a cover for increased robberies, burglaries, assaults and rapes and most people can easily move about in costume without being suspected of any wrong doing or criminal intent.
Look for adults who may be out of place, early in the day, extremely made over and heavy make-up and impossible to identify.
This could be a guise for criminal activity.
Communicate with co-workers, security dispatchers or police dispatchers before addressing dangerous situations, entering areas where a crime could be in progress, a fight is in progress or bodily harm has taken place or is imminent.
Halloween may be a night of fun, candy and laughter for children but for public safety personnel, it is a night of greatly increased dangers and unknowns.
All security officers must be on heightened alert regardless of assignment, physical location or any other reasonable factors.
Tags: halloween safety tips, halloween safety tips for kids, halloween safety tips for parents, safety halloween, safety on hallowwen, safety tips for children on halloween, safety tips for halloween
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