It’s that time of year again, the purgatory between fall and winter. Daylight savings time comes to an end and the days are getting shorter and the nights longer. We wake up in the dark and the sun sets earlier. This transition takes time and we need to remember to drive just a little slower, allow ourselves more time to get where we are going and to pay attention to the roads. They may be slick from overnight frost and the light gets sucked up by the dark on the West Coast.
Just this week a fatal accident took the life of a young man and the local volunteer fire fighters had to respond to a grim scene. Their jobs are not all glamour and joy riding in shiny vehicles. Their jobs are often harsh and the visions they come home with are gruesome. No one wants to see what they see, but they respond anyway and try to shake those images from their minds so they can sleep. It takes special people to do what they do.
The time changes on November 3rd and it is a reminder to clean and check your vehicle’s headlights, tires and radiator coolant. Make sure your vehicle is safe so that you will be as well. If you are planning on driving into the interior of the province, you will need winter tires.
Halloween is upon us and drivers are reminded to watch out for little ghosts and gobelins on the roads on Thursday night. They will be scrambling all over the town centre, so be extra cautious at the crosswalks. Keep your pets indoors as fireworks are a frightening experience for them.
A Safe Halloween community event is being planned at the Sooke Community Hall, on October 31 from 5 to 9 p.m. It’s all ages, and everyone is welcome. There is also Eeerie Acres in East Sooke as well as fireworks at Camp Barnard hosted by the Otter Point Volunteer Fire Dept. Adults partying should remember to plan for a ride home.
Winter is here — plan for it.