UPDATE: This article has been updated with the news of Chapel Hill cancelling large town-sponsored and special events on Friday.

Orange County health officials released their recommendations for the Halloween holiday on Thursday, encouraging people avoid typical traditions amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The guidance from the county health department details which Halloween and fall-themed activities are best at preventing the spread of the coronavirus. As North Carolina moves into Phase 3 of reopening, both state and local health officials have encouraged residents to remain cautious and aware of public health risks.

Orange County Health Director Quintana Stewart said in the release that caution is particularly important when we reach October 31.

“Many traditional Halloween activities can be high-risk for spreading viruses,” she said. “In-person Halloween festivities, and traditions such as trick-or-treating, pose risks to participants. It is impossible to know who has COVID-19 or who has been exposed to someone with the virus, making it both advisable and necessary to protect yourself and others by choosing safer, alternative ways to participate in Halloween.”

According to the guidance, traditional Halloween activities like trick-or-treating, trunk-or-treating and indoor costume parties are deemed higher-risk activities. Some modifications, like holding parties outdoors or setting out individually wrapped goodie bags, help lower the risk of COVID-19 exposure, but Orange County still deems them to be moderate risk activities.

Following the guidance, the Town of Chapel Hill shared a release on Friday saying it will not be holding any large gathering through the end of the calendar year in an effort to protect public health, cancelling events such as Halloween on Franklin Street.

To celebrate in the safest ways, according to the health department, county residents and families should find Halloween activities to do at home or at safe distances from others. Traveling through neighborhoods for door-to-door activity is strong discouraged, according to Thursday’s release. Additionally, when celebrating around anyone who is not in one’s immediate household, the county urges people to wear cloth face coverings and keep at least six feet of distance apart. Health officials also stressed costume masks do not qualify as safe protective face coverings from the coronavirus.

Here are the Halloween activities and their risk of COVID-19 exposure, as shared by the Orange County Health Department:

Lower Risk Activities

  • Carving or decorating pumpkins with members of your household for display
  • Carving or decorating pumpkins outside, at a safe distance, with neighbors or friends
  • Decorating your house, apartment, or living space
  • Completing a Halloween scavenger hunt (give children lists of Halloween-themed items to look for while admiring Halloween decorations on houses at a distance)
  • Holding a virtual Halloween costume contest
  • Hosting a Halloween movie night in your household
  • Having a trick-or-treat search in a scavenger hunt style in or around your home with members of your household

 

Moderate Risk Activities

  • Participating in one-way trick-or-treating, with individually wrapped goodie bags at the end of a driveway or at the edge of a yard
  • Holding a small-group, outdoor, open-air costume parade with people safely distanced apart
  • Attending an outdoor costume party where protective masks are used and people can remain more than six feet apart
  • Going to open-air, walk-through haunted forests, pumpkin patches or orchards where appropriate mask use is enforced
  • Hosting an outdoor Halloween movie night with local family or friends, with people spaced at least six feet apart

 

High Risk Activities

  • Traditional trick-or-treating, where treats are handed to children who go door to door
  • Trunk-or-treat events, where treats are handed out from trunks of cars that are lined up in large parking lots
  • Indoor costume parties or haunted houses where people may be crowded together
  • Hayrides or tractor rides with people who are not in your household
  • Consuming alcohol or drugs outside of the household, which can cloud judgment and potentially expose others
  • Attending fall festivals outside one’s community if you live in an area with community spread of COVID-19

 

Orange County also has a Frequently Asked Questions page about Halloween guidance on the county government’s website. Additionally, both the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control have issued public health recommendations for the October holiday.

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