There’s something scarier than ghouls, ghosts and goblins happening around the Tri-State area this Halloween.

In nearby Westchester county, 10 cases of an antibiotic-resistant staph infection spread among athletes at Iona College in White Plains. Nine athletes and a coach contracted the disease, one of whom required hospitalization. Luckily, after this horrendous outbreak, no deaths were reported.

Closer to home, a 12-year-old Brooklyn boy died from a staph infection (also know as MRSA) on Oct. 14 in Canarsie. However, parents and students at his local school, Canarsie Intermediate 211, were not aware of the MRSA outbreak until 11 days later. Parents were outraged-and worried for their children.

As a result, Washington took action. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) declared that hospitals and labs must inform the public of outbreaks of methicllin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria. On Hofstra’s campus, the University has taken action to promote public awareness of how to prevent staph infections a few steps away from your dorm room.

Signs reading “wash your hands” and “sharing isn’t caring” sponsored by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) are hung in hallway bathrooms in the University’s dormitories. Washing one’s hands and not sharing other people’s towels seem like common sense, but awareness of staph could save lives.

“This is information for our people. The most important thing is to wash your hands,” said Maureen Houck, the director of Health and Wellness. “When the University decided to go that way-to be proactive by informing our students, that’s when the signs went up.”

According to Houck, staph is only transmitted by skin-to-skin contact. The signs suggest not to share personal items like razor blades or towels because they can carry and spread the bacteria to others. There are no reported cases of staph at Hofstra, according to the Health and Wellness Center, but if you suspect something, cover all wounds, wash your hands and talk to a doctor and resident assistant immediately.