Fright night! (From Barry And District News)

Fright night!

BARRY police have revealed that Hallowe'en has become their busiest night of the year, with resources stretched as they try to cope with calls from frightened residents.

While for hundreds of children it's a fun night of dressing up and games, police are inundated with calls from older residents or complaints about gangs of youths.

The situation is so bad, they have launched a campaign to try to take the fear and mayhem out of the evening.

It is not only on October 31 that problems arise. Already, police have been called to incidents including one in which a driver had a lucky escape. Superintendent Colin Jones said a car going along Docks Link Road was hit by an egg.

While that does not sound serious, in fact it smashed the car's indicator light. The implications if it had hit the windshield are clear.

One resident from Park Crescent said gangs of youths had been going on egg throwing sprees in the street.

"I had to clean up a disgusting mess on the front of my house. It's as though kids use Hallowe'en as an excuse to go on the rampage."

Supt Jones said: "Hallow-e'en has turned into the busiest night in the policing calendar. The volume of telephone calls from the public reporting nuisance groups of youths is steadily increasing."

But he insists he does not want to spoil the tradition.

"We've printed posters for people to put into windows. One side says 'trick or treaters welcome', the other states 'no callers please'."

But he warned: "Police officers will be on the look-out for youths carrying potential missiles. Let's not forget these are public order offences."

A second poster will go into shops selling eggs and flour, to reminder staff they can refuse to sell them if they think they will be misused.

"The posters are available in police stations around the Vale. If people are worried, we recommend they look out of front windows before answering the door. If they have elderly friends or relatives, it may be worth checking if they need company for a few hours."

* Barry-based Supt Jones has been congratulated by Tony Blair for his work to cut local crime. Since the mid-1990s there has been a dramatic drop from 15,000 to 10,000 recorded crimes in the Vale.