Don’t let Death’s Sickle Take You Away
Safety issues of Halloween
Weekly Opinion Column
By Weaver & Lorraine
If you see zombies or witches on the metro or bus, please do not be frightened. It’s not a movie being filmed, it’s because Halloween is coming! As a festival with terrifying elements, both adults and children will wear an outlandish dress, put on all kinds of ghost-related make-up, and go to various places to celebrate. But in public, is it necessary for some over scary costumes to appear? Although people are free to choose what they dress and look like, it is still possible to cause panic in crowded public places, like the metro or train.
On October 23rd, in front of a metro station in Guangzhou, China. A large number of tourists were removing their ‘bloody’ make-up because they just attended a large Halloween themed activity. The metro station has prepared cleansing water for people. Passengers who do not remove their makeup have reason to be refused by the metro station. This event has aroused heated discussion on social media. Is Guangzhou Metro made a fuss?
In fact, in the past few years, the metro did not forbid passengers with scary makeup to enter the station directly. However, because many people dressed up as vampires or zombies, gathered and stayed in the metro station or metro cargos, some uninformed passengers were frightened and the normal order of the station was disturbed.
In a survey launched by social media, more than 86000 people voted, of whom more than 77000 agreed with Guangzhou Metro, accounting for 89% of the total number of participants. It shows that people are more supportive of this action.
In Britain, with Halloween approaching, people begin to decorate their homes or shops to welcome the coming of Halloween. Has public transport in the UK been affected during Halloween? Millie, a staff member at Preston Railway station spoke of Halloween, said British railway had no restrictions on people’s makeup. She also said that most people are used to all kinds of scary makeup on Halloween.
This may explain why public transport in China restricts the entry of passengers with scary makeup, because Halloween is a traditional festival in the UK, while in China, as a foreign festival, it has become more and more popular among young people in recent years. But there are still a large number of people who do not attend Halloween, so Chinese’s metro will prefer larger people to make regulations. It’s also to avoid scaring the elderly and children.
Although people have different opinions on whether the metro should limit this kind of makeup, in essence, this kind of practice is to avoid causing panic in crowded public places and making a threat to public safety. We should pay attention to our safety during Halloween.
Because Halloween activities are common at night, and people will not be surprised by people wearing strange clothes, the level of crime on Halloween is rising compared with the same period. Whether it’s for kids do ‘trick or treat’ or for men and women who come home from a party late night, the risk of personal safety threats increases.
The new research, published in the JAMA Pediatrics journal, revealed that the risk of a pedestrian fatality increases by 43% on Halloween as compared to other evenings. Halloween is the deadliest day of the year for child pedestrians. It’s not just children, adults are also hurt by car accidents. Because of this, when playing ‘trick or treat’, children must be accompanied by their parents and try to wear reflective or bright clothes at night. Remember to use the torch to tell the vehicle where you are when walking on the sidewalk.
Food safety is another problem that needs parents’ attention. In 2016, terrible news came for Cumberland County, New Jersey, United States. Police received the alarm, in the candy pile for children, found someone maliciously put needles and nails into the candy, luring the children to eat the nails and needles hide inside the candy.
This is not a single case; similar events take place in various places. Therefore, parents must check the candy they get and tell the children not to swallow it in one breath. If you see any pinholes or other unusual on the candy wrapper, throw them immediately.
Halloween Carnival is a rare opportunity for people to relax, but because of carnival, criminals will take advantage of people’s lax to carry out criminal activities. Make sure your safety and try to keep your mind clear. If there is a possibility of pass out, please make sure you walk with the person you trust.
