Fewer crowds flock to Salem to celebrate Halloween

SALEM, Mass. — Fewer people flocked to Salem to celebrate Halloween this year. It’s partly due to the pandemic and the weather may have also played a role at least on the night before Halloween.

Snow earlier in the day and temperatures hovering around the freezing mark may have kept some people away.

Salem’s mayor, even Gov. Charlie Baker, asked people who are thinking about coming to Salem this year to postpone their plans.

But Kat Birgfeld said she just had to come. She’s been here for the last seven years and make the trip all the way from Pennsylvania. She told Boston 25 News, “I wanted to feel normal for a minute. I made my reservations months ago and took every precaution in order to come and support the city in this hard time.”

Salem canceled all events here for this weekend. The Board of Health is required all businesses to close early by 8 p.m. But a few people still came including Birgfeld, “I feel people just want to be in the city because it’s Salem and it’s Halloween.”

If you still intend on coming be advised that there are parking restrictions in place and the MBTA is limiting stops in Salem to try to discourage people from coming out.

The crowds dissipated quickly on Friday evening making it feel very eerie compared to recent years.

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