The Horrors of Halloween

This year Halloween falls on a Saturday, which means the real horrors of Halloween are even more frightening...

Image: © Mike Bodnar

Let me get one thing clear: I've always disliked Halloween. Not because I'm a curmudgeonly old bloke who loathes the concept of little children knocking on my door (I am), or because the whole thing has been commercialised beyond belief (it has), but because Halloween is just an excuse for pretend horror, and grisly ghoulish get-ups that have little to do with the Celtic origins of the festival. 

It has become an annual event in the same vein (see what I did there?) as Black Friday sales, Boxing Day sales and Amazon Prime Day. The sound of Halloween is not a blood-curdling scream or the howl of a werewolf - it is the ring of cash registers. 

Last year, research showed that Americans planned to spend US$8.8 billion on Halloween-related products and activities. Ka-ching! 

But the other sound of Halloween is the mournful wailing of ambulance sirens.

Eight billion US dollars. No wonder they're grinning. Image: Mike Bodnar

That's because Halloween activities have become synonymous with horror-filled statistics, with real-life incidents involving genuine blood, and genuine fear. And - sadly - actual death. And this year, with a plague on the loose, it has the potential to spread DREAD AND FEAR as never before (cue the Vincent Price laughing-track from Thriller).

No but seriously. Each year around Halloween the number of casualties in hospital departments rises - here in the UK, in the United States, and likely in other countries where All-Hallows Eve is 'celebrated'. 

Fireworks add to the risk in the UK/ Image: Mike Bodnar

Hand injuries sustained while carving pumpkins into grimacing toothy lanterns are common, while eye injuries caused either by chemical spillages from broken glow sticks or inappropriate use of ghoulish contact lenses all see medical centres busier than usual.

In Britain things are not helped by the fact that Halloween occurs less than a week before Guy Fawkes - bonfire night - so there's also an increase in firework-related burns and injuries.

In New Zealand the government's Accident Compensation Corporation - which pays wholly or partly for accidents (and subsequent rehabilitation) sustained within NZ - last year researched through six years' worth of Halloweens and found 136 related injuries. 

Not much compared with some other countries perhaps, but then the population is only around five million. The claims showed that they included the following words: 

Always cut pumpkins away from you!
Image: Supplied




• trick or treat
• prank
• creep
• pumpkin / carving
• dress up / costume
• lantern
• lollies / candies
• casket
• cemetery
• Halloween
• ghost / ghoul
• scare / fright
• haunted
• werewolf.

The most frequent injury type was ‘soft tissue’ (pumpkin carvers, I'm lookin' at you) but personally I'd just like to know who the 'creep' was.

Disturbingly - and this comes from the US but likely applies in other places - more children are injured or killed by cars on Halloween, due to trick-or-treating out after dark. Analysts say it's not always the fault of the drivers either, as Halloween masks can inhibit a child's vision when crossing roads, so they might not see a vehicle approaching. 

It's even worse when Halloween falls on a Saturday because there's a higher number of alcohol-affected drivers on the roads. 

SATURDAY HORRORS

Research in the US suggests that it's not just drunk drivers who are to blame; in 2015 - the last time the Day of Dread fell on a Saturday - Dr Sarah Denny, a physician at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Ohio, noted that when Halloween falls on a Saturday parents at home relaxing after their working week can consume more alcohol, and have a correspondingly more relaxed attitude to their children's activities. Which means that an extra number of kids might be unsupervised, allowed to stay out later, roam further and, well, you know the dangers.

She also notes that the kids themselves are less vigilant: 'A lot of it is the excitement of what's going on and people are less careful."

Stay safe! Image: Mike Bodnar

The bad news is that this year Halloween falls on a Saturday again. 

The good news - ironically given that October 31 is a day of zombies and fear - is that with Covid-19 present in society (and a UK government edict that outdoor Halloween activities are to be banned in lockdown areas) there will be fewer children trick-or-treating, and depending on local lockdown restrictions, maybe fewer drivers on the roads too. 

Despite the fact that we have the genuine horror of an actual pandemic to cope with, virologist Dr Chris Smith from the University of Cambridge is optimistic, and says that it is still possible to enjoy Halloween safely providing we take certain measures.

In a recent BBC report he said, 'Because it's Halloween I'd say people are quite likely to be wearing a mask anyway so if they can make a face covering work it's [sic] way into their costume then even better.' 

Wrapped sweets: recommended. Image: Mike Bodnar

Dr Smith advised that trick-or-treaters should avoid visiting elderly or vulnerable neighbours and should consider prearranging visits with householders who are comfortable with them knocking on their doors. 

The virologist warned that the nature of the tricks should also be thought through, as any that involve entering a property or close contact could increase the risk of Covid transmission. 

He had further advice regarding treats, saying that handing out unwrapped sweets ('candy' for our American cousins) or offering them in a bowl where multiple children can delve their hands in isn't recommended, and that wrapped sweets are preferable. Better still, he advises (grumpy) people like me just to hang a bag of wrapped sweets outside so the little blighters can help themselves (grumpy is my inclusion, not his).

Personally, because I'm curmudgeonly and old, I'd be delighted if the government just banned Halloween outdoor activities nationwide this year so I won't have to suffer kids knocking on our door trick-or-treating. But on a more practical level I will be happy to see a drop in accident statistics as a result of more people staying home, enabling medical centre staff to concentrate on a more normal workload.

That doesn't mean I'll be totally safe of course - the real of horror of this Halloween is that October 31 is my wife's birthday, and I haven't got her anything yet!

Further:

NHS advice for a safer Halloween and Bonfire Night

The Metro guide to this year's Halloween

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