SALEM, MASS. (WHDH) - Halloween festivities were in full swing in Salem Tuesday as tens of thousands of people are expected to gather to mark the holiday.
Haunted Happenings events in Salem — including a hypnosis show, a witches magic circle on the Common and a fireworks show over the North River — kicked off at 9 a.m. and are scheduled to continue until 10 p.m.
Additional trains have been added between Salem and North Station and Salem and Beverly. The final train to Boston leaves at 10:59 p.m. and the final train to Newburyport leaves at 12:21 a.m.
People were all dressed up Tuesday afternoon, celebrating the season in the streets and in local stores.
“I come every year,” said Shirin Batoei.
“For us here in Salem, Halloween is it,” said Kelsey Marr, a manager at Partridge in a Bear Tree in town. “It is our big holiday.”
Elsewhere in Salem, the owner of Witch Way Gifts said his store wouldn’t be open if not for Halloween, saying a huge chunk of the store’s business comes during October.
Salem’s visitors came from far and wide Tuesday. Among them, Britney Atwood brought her children all the way from northern California.
“I love it,” she said. “It was my dream to come here.”
Others came from Texas.
“This is on our bucket list to come down here,” said Mia Deleon.
7NEWS found one group of women from Canada posing in a guillotine. The group had some lobster and were enjoying the sights.
“It is Halloween and we do have to do Salem right,” said Jennifer Inskip.
As festivities continued Tuesday, local and state police kept watch to make sure everyone was safe.
In addition to their on-street presence, officials recently shared a renewed reminder to never get behind the wheel after drinking after a man was arrested in connection with a suspected drunken driving pedestrian crash that left a woman seriously injured over the weekend.
The crash came just hours before another incident involving a suspected drunken driver and Salem police officers, in which police said a driver nearly struck officers on Washington Street.
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