Halloween Storm Forces Thousands of Evacuations

Trick-or-treat storms batter a vast region in the U.S.

Heavy rain and high winds forced dozens of U.S. cities and towns into cancelling Halloween activities on Thursday, battering a vast region from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes.

“The cities of Indianapolis and Muncie, Indiana, postponed trick-or-treating, local officials said. Toledo and at least 30 cities in Central Ohio put it off until Friday or as late as Sunday, according to the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission’s website,” said a report.

The storm system, aided by the remnants of Hurricane Raymond, which dissipated over the Pacific on Tuesday, dumped as much as 15 inches of rain over Austin area, killing at least two people, and forcing some 1,000 residences to evacuate due to flooding.

“For certain areas, it looks like this will be in their Top 10 [flood events] of all time,” said a meteorologist at the National Weather Service Austin-San Antonio office.