(Source: CPSC website, Recall number: 14-028 dated November 21, 2013).
Citing two deaths by cord strangulation, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said that the company is recalling 600,000 Angelcare Movement and Sound Monitors with Sensor Pads. The CPSC explained the hazard, as follows:
The cord attached to the baby monitor’s sensor pad is placed under the crib mattress, which poses a strangulation risk if the child pulls the cord into the crib and it becomes wrapped around the neck.
In one case, in November 2011, a 13-month-old female died in San Diego. In the other case, in August 2004, an 8-month-old female died in Salem, Oregon. In both fatalities, the cord from the sensor pads was pulled into the crib by the infant. In addition, there have been two reports of infants who became entangled in cords of Angelcare baby monitor models, which did not result in fatalities. In these incidents, it could not be determined if the “sensor pad cord” or the “monitor cord” was involved in the incident.
The monitors — made by Angelcare Monitors Inc., of Quebec, Canada — include a sensor placed in the crib under the mattress to monitor the baby’s movement. On all models that did not include rigid cord covers, the sensor pad is connected to the monitor unit by an approximately 11-foot electrical cord, which “can be pulled into the crib and can wrap around the child’s neck.”
Angelcare is providing consumers with a repair kit that includes rigid protective cord covers through which the sensor pad cords can be threaded, a new, permanent electric cord warning label about the strangulation risk, and revised instructions. The recalled baby monitors were sold at Babies R Us/Toys R Us, Burlington Coat Factory, Meijer, Sears, Walmart, Amazon.com, Target.com, Overstock.com, and nearly 70 small baby specialty stores, from October 1999 through September 2013 for about $100to $300.
Consumers should immediately make sure cords are placed out of reach of the child and contact Angelcare to order a free repair kit and/or to obtain additional information.
Liever, Hyman & Potter, P.C., serves the injured, and their families, in Reading, Pottsville and throughout Eastern and Central Pennsylvania. The lawyers there handle personal injury claims, including claims for injuries or death caused by unsafe or dangerous products.