With Halloween falling on the weekend this year, South Florida residents should be extra careful when trick or treating in their neighborhoods. This includes heavily settled areas in Fort Myers, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami, Florida.
Halloween is a time when children are literally running through the roads and streets -- adding extra responsibility on parents and drivers to avoid Florida car and pedestrian accidents. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), citing an article from Parents Magazine, recommends parents use common sense when preparing their children for Halloween:
Make sure costumes and shoes fit, so children aren't tripping over themselves
Supervise young children who go out trick or treating
Teach children to look both ways before crossing the street and to cross at intersections
Keep children in well-lit areas only
Create a safe neighborhood zone that limits children's Halloween travels to only houses they know (and teach children to stay away from dark houses, decrepit houses, or houses with barking or loose dogs -- even Florida premises liability law cannot stop a dog bite or fall causing injury from happening)
As experienced Fort Lauderdale accident injury attorneys and parents ourselves, we know how precious children are to their families. Be careful out there this Halloween season, so the scares you experience are only of the fun candy-corn and costumes variety.
Other South Florida Halloween Driving Safety Issues
In addition, NHTSA cites thousands of motor vehicle crashes every year during Halloween week -- in part due to adults' partying with alcohol. As with any holiday celebration, the risk of being involved a drunk driving accident increases as people drive home from bars and parties.
NHTSA also urges police departments to be on extra alert in college towns (such as Boca Raton, Coral Gables, Miami and Tampa, Florida), where students are likely to be drinking and partying more during Halloween week.
Child Pedestrian Safety Education
NHTSA, Sept. 2009 (PDF)
Related Web Resource
Are you Halloween prepared? Safety tips with a Parenting magazine expert
Yahoo.com Oct. 12, 2010
