As the "spooky season" begins in Central Texas, many cities are announcing their trick-or-treating plans for this year.
For anyone looking for an easy way to navigate which houses are stocked on candy, the social networking site, Nextdoor, has its annual Halloween treat map available.
The City of Killeen announced it will be hosting door-to-door celebrations on Saturday, Oct. 30 this year. The festivities will be held from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. and anyone interested in passing out candy within the city is asked to turn on the front porch lights to indicate that costumes and buckets are welcome.
"The City also encourages everyone to take the proper precautions to limit the spread of COVID-19," said the announcement on Monday. "As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers door-to-door trick-or-treating a higher risk activity for the virus to spread and recommends parents and kids limit large crowds."
At the height of the pandemic, last year the CDC ranked Halloween activities, identifying low versus high-risk ways to celebrate the holiday. This year, Director of the Centers for Disease Control Dr. Rochelle Walensky said children should be able to safely trick-or-treat outdoors.
The City of Killeen said anyone choosing to participate should be observing the following precautions:
Trick-or-Treaters:
- Stay home if you or any member of your group is sick
- Wear a cloth mask (costume masks are not appropriate substitutes for protective masks)
- Keep at least six feet of distance at all times; avoid parties, encourage small groups
- Remain outdoors
- Observe good hygiene by using hand sanitizer and washing hands
- Wash hands and inspect candy before enjoying
Participating Houses/Venues:
- Do not participate if you or any member of your household is sick
- Wear a cloth mask when interacting with trick-or-treaters
- Keep at last six feet of distance from trick-or-treaters
- Keep all activities outdoors
- Wash hands frequently when preparing treats and before and after delivering them
- Consider contactless delivery, by pre-packaging treats and setting them out to grab
