New York Halloween parade falls victim to Sandy

A past Halloween parade. PHOTO FROM HALLOWEEN-NYC.COM

NEW YORK—Organizers of New York’s annual Halloween parade called off this year’s event, planned for Wednesday, because of superstorm Sandy.

“For the first time in our 39-year history, the mayor’s emergency management and the NYPD have canceled the parade,” organizers said in a statement on their website, www.halloween-nyc.com.

The parade attracts tens of thousands of people each year, many wearing outrageous Halloween costumes.

A New York police (NYPD) spokeswoman confirmed that the October 31 event has been called off because of the huge storm that hit the city on Monday night. Much of the route of the parade is without power.

“We hope that everyone who would have come to the parade is safe,” added the organizers’ statement.