5.5 million window coverings recalled following strangulations
Filed under: Recalls, Consumer Ally
More than 5.5 million window coverings are being recalled after several children strangled in the cords and other near-strangulation incidents were reported, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said.The massive recall initiative includes six separate recalls from six different companies, mainly of Roman shades and pull-up blinds. Each of the recalls involves at least one strangulation or near-strangulation.
By far the largest of the recalls is by the Lewis Hyman Co., which is recalling 4.2 million roll-up blinds and 600,000 Roman shades blamed in two deaths. The shades were sold at Target and other retailers nationwide.
Also being recalled are:
- 245,000 Lutron roller shades sold for $200-$2,000 mostly by specialty retailers.
- 120,000 Ikea Melina Roman blinds.
- 163,000 thermal sailcloth and matchstick bamboo Roman shades sold at Target.
- 85,000 Pottery Barn kids Roman shades.
- 32,000 Vertical Land horizontal, vertical and cellular shades.
Concern about the blinds mainly involve the looped cords used to raise and lower them. Children, particularly toddlers, can get their heads caught in the loops, risking strangulation.
The CPSC urges those who have children in their homes or have children as visitors to check their Roman Shades and roll-up blinds. If looped cords, exposed inner cords or exposed lifting loops are found, the CPSC suggests replacing the blinds or shades with products that do not have exposed pull cords or inner cords.
The types of blinds in this recall were not subject to guidelines the CPSC and the window covering industry agreed to in 1995 that eliminated the loops from most window blinds. Between 1991 and 2003, at least 130 children strangled on these cords.
The window covering industry for well over a decade has been providing free retrofit kits to consumers and offering guidance on safety. To see a graphic demonstration of the dangers of the cords, you read this safety alert issued by the CPSC.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-27-2009 @ 2:19PM
Mallenroh said...
and where were the parents when these strangulations/near strangulations occured? My parents had blinds on the windows for as long as I can remember and if my brother, me, or even the cat got too close to the pull-chords, my parents would yell at us or grab us and pull us away from the window
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8-27-2009 @ 2:32PM
salome said...
tragic incidents but c'mon,please ?
unsupervised "toddlers" or placing their cribs,play pens right under the windows with any blinds and shades could still lead to accidents involving cords.
so being blinds/shades KILL,they should have mandatory licensing required prior to purchase .
why not ?
flame away all those "not getting it."
Reply
8-27-2009 @ 7:11PM
betty said...
A mandatory liscense?? To own blinds for windows???
YEP... and why not a liscense for steak knives... ? How about matches (and lighters).. lot's of smokers OMG and lets not forget CELL PHONES! MY GOD..imagine how a child could strangle to death on those batteries!! YES they can get them out. AND BATHTUBS OMG they are so dangerous for children. THEY SHOULD BE OUTLAWED! How many children have gotten that bathroom door open and fell or climbed in to a tub? MY GOSH..the list could go on forever!
8-27-2009 @ 3:23PM
Angie said...
I don't get why the manufacturers are still selling blinds with the single loop cord instead of the split cord. Isn't it the law to make them that way?
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8-30-2009 @ 9:23PM
Holly said...
I thought loop cords were gone from the market too. But even then, the double cords can and will get tangled. A child can still wrap two cords around their necks and get knotted up. Nothing will ever prevent these types of strangulations until parents wrap up the cords so they are completely out of reach of their children. It shouldn't be the government's responsiblity to keep our children safe from simple products such as this. It IS the governments responsibility to warn us as to their proper use. The write who used "steak knives" as an example is correct. We have gone overboard in this regard!
8-27-2009 @ 3:39PM
Leslie said...
Window blind strangulation has been a problem for DECADES. You mean it is still going on???? Why have the manufacturers not adjusted?
We always kept the cords on some type of a "holder" way up high. We learned after I saw our cat get tangled up and rescued him. NEVER AGAIN!
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8-27-2009 @ 4:29PM
Buddy said...
Some people are rather stupid..all you have to do is cut the cords and knot the ends. I don't see it as an owner problem but I do see it as a stupidity problem on the part of the owners.
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8-27-2009 @ 5:10PM
Mary said...
Duh...either cut the stupid cord or tie the thing up out of a kid's reach like we did when our boys were little......Honestly, they should give tests to people before allowing them to reproduce,..if they cannot use some common sense in putting up window coverings. How many people are going to actually take down those blinds and install new ones? This is the dumbest recall to ever take place.....How about don't install these blinds if you are not going to watch your baby brats 24/7?
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8-27-2009 @ 7:11PM
betty said...
Not only children get hurt by these. Pets are also in danger. Several yrs back I came home one day to find my precious little Moo-Moo up on the back of the sofa and tangled up in the cords!. Thank goodness the sofa was pressed up against the window seal somewhat or he could have fallen and gotten very hurt. Who knows what our pets do when we are not home? Normally, little Moo would never climb up on the back of the sofa, BUT evidently he liked to climb up there and sleep during the day.. He was starting to slip and was part way dangling down behind the couch and all tangled up in the cording... Poor little boy had to half stand for a some time until we found him.
After that I always rolled that cording up and draped it over a little hook I put on the side of the window frame.
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8-27-2009 @ 7:09PM
Ann said...
I always knotted the ends of those cords every 4 inches, and all my 4 children made it through infanthood alive. Besides, nowadays there are blinds that have no cords at all, you simply pull them up or down by the bottom. That's what I'd get if I had a baby or toddler.
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8-30-2009 @ 9:24PM
Holly said...
WHERE are these idiot parents? You are supposed to be in the room with your young children. If you leave the room you take them with you. If the blinds are near their crib, then you wrap up the cord so they cannot reach it. The blind manufacturer is NOT to blame for these strangulations. Parents need to step up and watch their children. What the hell is going these days? You can't go to a decent restaurant without children running around in circles. It's one thing to witness a tantrum; they are expected from kids. What you don't expect is lazy parents who don't care enough to watch their own children and take responsibility for them. Instead we have the government having to do massive recalls of a regular product because parents won't take the time to child-proof their own homes. Get off your butts parents.
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