FAIRMONT - This year, many elderly residents at long-term care facilities will miss the chance to see little superheroes, fairy princesses and ghosts haunting their hallways. And it is all for their safety.

Many trick-or-treating events long held at local nursing homes and assisted-living units have been canceled because of the concern of spreading H1N1 influenza between the groups.

Temperance Lake Ridge in Sherburn is posting employees at its door to hand out candy to revelers, but no one will be allowed inside.

Lakeview Health Services in Fairmont canceled its event altogether. Bob Lake, executive director at Lakeview, said Lakeview has not put restrictions on the number of visitors a resident can have, or the age of those visitors, but the facility is recommending anyone not feeling well stay away.

But while Fairmont Medical Center has restricted young visitors from its facility, communications director Jason Howland says the adjacent Lutz Wing Nursing Home has not made any policy changes.

Howland says Lutz Wing is asking anyone feeling ill not to come, but school groups already scheduled are still welcome, as are family and friends of residents.

Of the five area homes, only Truman Senior Living reports making no changes because of the pandemic, although administrator Annyea Berg did say the home doesn't typically have many young visitors.

"This is their home," she said of residents. "We can't keep anyone out."

None of the homes contacted has any confirmed cases of H1N1 in residents or staff.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says elderly patients are not as susceptible to the virus as children, but underlying health issues do affect the severity of the disease once it is contracted.

Halloween festivities are not the only events being canceled this year to stop the spread of illness.

Lange said Temperance Lake Ridge has put a monthly story time with third-graders on hold until the school and clinic report student illnesses have gone down.

Downtown Plaza and Five Lakes Centre in Fairmont will hold trick-or-treating events as scheduled.