Trick-or-Treating Nixed After Hurricane Wilma

MIAMI – Little ghosts and goblins in cities across South Florida were stuck inside Monday night as officials urged parents to cancel this year's trick-or-treating because of the damage from Hurricane Wilma.

The power was still out in many places, and storm debris made some streets and sidewalks hazardous.

"In Miami Springs, they always have parties and tell stories. And now they have canceled that," said a disappointed Mika Lorenzo, 9. He still planned to wear his knight's costume.

Officials in Miami and other communities asked parents not to let their children go out after dark Monday. Several cities have had curfews since the storm hit a week ago, and some of those curfews were still in effect. But even in cities where the curfews had been lifted, officials worried about children being out in the night.

"If your kids don't need to go door-to-door trick or treating this year, they probably shouldn't," said Miami police Lt. Bill Schwartz.

In Miami Springs, Bob Cole said he would keep his 7-year-old daughter, Celeste, home. "There is a lot of dangerous stuff on the street. Downed wires, hazardous debris, generators unattended," he said.

Florida Power & Light (search), the state's largest electric utility, said Monday afternoon that it had restored power to about 75 percent of the customers blacked out by the Oct. 24 storm, but that left 800,000 homes and businesses still without electricity.

The utility hopes to have all power restored in the area by mid-November.

Another hurricane victim, whose New Orleans (search) home was destroyed earlier by Hurricane Katrina, got a special Halloween (search) treat: Ten-year-old trumpet player Glenn Hall III was given a new instrument and the role of grand marshal for the Greenwich Village (search) parade in New York, the nation's biggest public Halloween event.

The pint-size son of a handyman got the chance play atop a float Monday evening.

"I love it. It's got more sound, smoother pistons, a softer mouthpiece than my old one," said Glenn, fingering the silver trumpet donated by a California woman.

The parade's symbol — as it was in 2001 after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks — was a phoenix rising from the ashes.

Florida Gov. Jeb Bush praised his state's efforts to mobilize resources after the storm but said damaged communities will feel the hurricane's effects for some time to come.

"A month from now, we'll be worried about the affordability of housing for people who lost their homes," Bush said. "We'll be worried about the agricultural communities in our state that have been devastated."

The state listed about 1,500 people still in emergency shelters Monday. Public schools in Broward and Palm Beach counties were to remain closed through at least Wednesday and in Miami-Dade through Tuesday.

The death toll from Wilma climbed to 21 in Florida over the weekend.