Ghosts, skeletons, princesses and black cats roamed the streets as usual this Halloween, but they kept their distance, wore face coverings and carried hand sanitizer in their quest for treats.As with everything else this year, the pandemic left its mark on Halloween. Parades, parties and haunted houses were canceled because of bans on large gatherings and concerns that spooky celebrations could spread the coronavirus.Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
People walk past social-distancing markers meant to help prevent the spread of the new coronavirus as they trick-or-treat for Halloween, Oct. 31, 2020, in downtown Overland Park, Kan.In Glen Allen, Virginia, just outside Richmond, neighbors left individually wrapped bags of candy on tables at the ends of driveways to avoid having dozens of kids coming to their doors and sticking their hands in the same candy bowls.Matt Cheadle, 35, a furniture designer, called it “extremely” socially distanced trick-or-treating.Still funParker, his 5-year-old son, was going as Yoshi, the green dinosaur from the Mario Kart video game series, and the chance to show off his costume and get candy is all he’s talked about recently.”He’s already had so much taken away from him this year,” Cheadle said. “We think this is a small compromise for Halloween. The little kiddos will still dress up, they’ll still get to go driveway to driveway, but not door to door.”Jane Hassebroek helps her sister Lydia dye her hair for a costume for Halloween at their home, as the coronavirus disease outbreak continues, in New York, Oct. 31, 2020.Halloween comes as coronavirus cases are surging in many parts of the country, and health officials warn of the potential for even higher numbers this winter.More than 230,000 people have died of COVID-19 in the country, and total U.S. cases surpassed 9 million on Friday, according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center. In the past two weeks, more than 78,700 new virus cases have been reported each day on average, up from about 55,100 in mid-October, according to Johns Hopkins.So, many cities and towns issued guidelines for celebrating Halloween safely.New York City’s health department recommended avoiding large groups, haunted houses and bobbing for apples — “Keep your spit to yourself,” it said in an advisory. Officials urged people instead to focus on safe activities like pumpkin carving, home decorating, outdoor scavenger hunts and virtual costume parties.NY parade canceledLots of festivities were canceled, including the Greenwich Village Halloween Parade, a nearly 50-year tradition that typically draws tens of thousands to the streets of Manhattan. Organizers staged a virtual puppet parade instead.In New Hampshire, where coronavirus cases are also on the rise, emergency management officials in Coos County recommended residents not participate in door-to-door trick-or-treating or group events. Trick-or-treating was called off entirely in Pittsburg, a town of about 900 in the northern part of the state.Betsy Curtin and her sons were also skipping it for safety’s sake. Instead, it was a visit to their grandparents’ houses in costume — 7-year-old Alex as Batman and 9-year-old Charlie as Captain America — then back home for pizza and a movie.”I only bought Kit Kats for them, so I’ve officially ruined their weekend,” Curtin said. “Hoping the grandparents come through with specialty chocolates.”
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