Four Suffocation Deaths Lead to Largest Crib Recall in U.S. History

recall listOn Nov. 23, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the recall of more than 2.1 million Stork Craft drop-side cribs, including Stork Craft drop-side cribs with the Fisher-Price logo. The CPSC urges parents and caregivers to immediately stop using the recalled cribs and find an alternative, safe sleeping environment for their baby.

The drop-sides of the recalled cribs can detach in one or more places due to problems with the cribs’ plastic hardware or improper installation of the drop-sides.  This creates space between the drop-side and the crib mattress where infants and toddlers can become entrapped, leading to suffocation.  Falls can also occur if the drop-side detaches completely.

The CPSC is aware of 110 incidents of drop-side detachment, including 15 entrapments and 20 falls.  Four of the entrapments resulted in suffocation deaths: a 7-month-old in Gouverneur, N.Y.; a 7-month-old in New Iberia, La.; a 6-month-old in Summersville, W.Va.; and a 9-month-old in Bronx, N.Y.

The cribs were sold in the United States and Canada from January of 1993 to October of 2009 for $100 to $400. Major retailers included BJ’s Wholesale Club, J.C. Penney, Kmart, Meijer, Sears, USA Baby, and Wal-Mart stores and online at Amazon.com, Babiesrus.com, Costco.com, Target.com, and Walmart.com.

For more details, including how to receive a free repair kit that converts the drop-side to a fixed side, please read the CPSC recall noticeDo not attempt to fix the cribs without the kit.

On Nov. 23, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the recall of more than 2.1 million Stork Craft drop-side cribs, including Stork Craft drop-side cribs with the Fisher-Price logo. The CPSC urges parents and caregivers to immediately stop using the recalled cribs and find an alternative, safe sleeping environment for their baby.

The drop-sides of the recalled cribs can detach in one or more places due to problems with the cribs’ plastic hardware or improper installation of the drop-sides.  This creates space between the drop-side and the crib mattress where infants and toddlers can become entrapped, leading to suffocation.  Falls can also occur if the drop-side detaches completely.

The CPSC is aware of 110 incidents of drop-side detachment, including 15 entrapments and 20 falls.  Four of the entrapments resulted in suffocation deaths: a 7-month-old in Gouverneur, N.Y.; a 7-month-old in New Iberia, La.; a 6-month-old in Summersville, W.Va.; and a 9-month-old in Bronx, N.Y.

The cribs were sold in the United States and Canada from January of 1993 to October of 2009 for $100 to $400. Major retailers included BJ’s Wholesale Club, J.C. Penney, Kmart, Meijer, Sears, USA Baby, and Wal-Mart stores and online at Amazon.com, Babiesrus.com, Costco.com, Target.com, and Walmart.com.

For more details, including how to receive a free repair kit that converts the drop-side to a fixed side, please read the CPSC recall noticeDo not attempt to fix the cribs without the kit.

For more information, go to:

Consumer Product Safety Commission

Safe Kids USA

www.recalls.gov

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Safety Experts Remind Parents: No Children under 16 on ATVs

While ATVs are part of daily life for many across the United States, whether for recreation or an occupation, Safe Kids Utah recommends that children under the age of 16 should never ride on, or operate, ATVs of any size – including youth-sized ATVs.

ATVs are inherently difficult to operate, and children do not have the cognitive and physical abilities to drive or ride these vehicles safely. “If you’re not old enough to drive a car with safety belts on a paved road with traffic control devices, you’re certainly not old enough to drive a powerful open-seat vehicle at speeds up to 70 miles per hour over rough terrain.”

Nationwide, approximately 130 children under the age of 16 die each year as a result of ATV-related injuries, and an estimated 40,000 children under the age of 16 are seriously injured each year in ATV-related incidents. While a helmet can reduce the risk of severe head injuries, there are no safety devices that adequately protect against other injuries commonly sustained while riding ATVs.

The number of ATV-related injuries per year more than doubled between 1993 and 2006. In 2007, children accounted for one out of four ATV-related injuries. Beginning in 1998, the ATV industry observed voluntary guidelines restricting the sale of adult-sized ATVs (with engines bigger than 90 cc) for use by children under age 16, but compliance testing from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) showed numerous instances of noncompliance with the voluntary standard. 

The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, signed into law in 2008, made the voluntary standard mandatory as of April 2009.  The new law prohibits companies from recommending, marketing, or selling new adult-sized ATVs for use by persons under the age of 16.  The law uses maximum speed, rather than engine size, for determining the age-appropriateness of ATVs and requires that new ATVs include labels and hangtags with certain safety information, including age recommendations.  However, the law still permits the manufacture of youth-sized ATVs, which pose inherent safety risks.

Rollovers, collisions and ejections involving ATVs can cause instantly fatal head injuries as well as serious nonfatal injuries to the head, spinal cord and abdomen. A child riding an ATV is four times more likely to be seriously injured than a rider over the age of 16.

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