Deputies and firefighters are working hard this week to make sure area children have a safe and enjoyable Halloween.
The Collier County Sheriff’s Office and the county’s fire agencies are teaming up to remind citizens of important ways to stay safe while trick-or-treating.
Throughout the week deputies assigned to schools will be talking to students about safe-trick-or-treating practices. Students will learn that they should travel in groups, wear reflective costumes and only stop at well-lit houses, among other things.
On Saturday night -- Halloween -- deputies will be out in force in Collier County neighborhoods to help ensure that trick-or-treaters are safe. They’ll be patrolling in cars, bikes, Segways and ATVs and walking residential streets. Along with interacting with parents and children, deputies will be on the lookout for possible problems, including gangs and sexual offenders.
CCSO has also reached out Neighborhood Watch groups and Community Safety teams and encouraged representatives to be out in their communities and to be extra eyes and ears for deputies.
Firefighters on fire engines will be out in the neighborhoods in Golden Gate on Halloween evening, making sure kids are safe and keeping an eye out for issues that might arise.
Halloween activities include:
* Friday, Oct. 30: McGruff the Crime Dog will join deputies at Trunk or Treat from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Max Hasse Community Park in Golden Gate Estates. The event, sponsored by the Homeowners Association of Golden Gate Estates, will feature fun-filled activities for kids including a “haunted” walk through the woods, along with goodies and candy.
* Saturday, Oct. 31: North Naples Fire District’s annual costume party and open house, noon to 3 p.m., Fire Station 45, 1885 Veterans Park Drive. There will be a costume contest for kids and Sheriff Kevin J. Rambosk will be one of the featured judges. Deputies will also be on hand at the event, handing out safety literature and treats. CCSO patrol vehicles, Segways, Sky Watch Sentinel and other equipment will also be on display.
* Saturday, Oct. 31: Deputies will guide groups through their Haunted Trail from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the old East Naples substation, 11121 U.S. 41 E., East Naples. The East Naples Fire Department’s Fire Engine 20 will assist. Last year hundreds of kids visited the spooky trail filled with graveyard tombstones, bones, cooking pot, coffins and cop cars decorated with spider webs and skeletons. The trail is appropriate for kids of all ages. Kids are encouraged to bring a flashlight or a glow stick.
* Saturday, Oct. 31: Deputies from CCSO’s Crime Prevention Section will be on hand at a party from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at McLeod Park, 101 W. Broadway, Everglades City. Crime prevention information will be available, and deputies will hold a crime prevention trivia game with prizes. Deputies will also hand out candy and CCSO trick-or-treat bags.
* Saturday, Oct. 31: Deputies will be handing out bottled water and candy from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Orange Grove Trail and Grove Drive in the Orange Tree community in Golden Gate Estates.
In addition, CCSO and the fire agencies will post Halloween safety tips throughout the week on colliersheriff.org.
Watch a CCSO Halloween safety video:
