Monday, November 23, 2009

Very Scary Crib Recall

Another reason to worry...
All Dropside cribs were band in Suffolk today. BOth my kids have this type of crib but not the brand listed below...what do you do???


November 23, 2009
After four deaths Stork Craft recalls 2.1 million drop-side cribs
Four babies have died and 35 others have been entrapped or injured in one of the 2.1 million Stork Craft cribs recalled today, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced. Almost 150,000 of the cribs carry the Fisher-Price logo. The recall involves 1,213,000 drop-side cribs sold in the U.S. and 968,000 sold in Canada over the past 16 years.

The CPSC and Health Canada are aware of 110 incidents in which the drop-side of a Stork Craft crib detached. Of those, 15 were entrapments in which four children died of suffocation. According to the CPSC, the deaths include 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. Also reported were 20 falls from the cribs with injuries ranging from concussions to bumps and bruises. The cribs involved in the recall have plastic drop-side hardware that had broken, gone missing, or become deformed as well as other hardware that was loose or missing. In some cases, the drop-sides had been installed upside-down.

The Stork Craft cribs were manufactured between January 1993 and October 2009. The recall also includes Stork Craft cribs with the Fisher-Price logo that were manufactured between October 1997 and December 2004. The Stork Craft cribs with the Fisher-Price logo were first sold in the U.S. and Canada in 1998. The manufacture date, model number, crib name, country of origin, and the firm’s name, address, and contact information are located on the assembly instruction sheet attached to the mattress support board. The firm’s insignia “storkcraft baby” or “storkling” is inscribed on the drop-side teething rail of some cribs. In Stork Craft cribs with the “Fisher-Price” logo, the logo can be found on the crib’s teething rail, in the manufacturer’s instructions, on the assembly instruction sheet attached to the mattress support board, and on the end panels of some models.

The cribs were sold at major retailers in the U.S. and Canada including 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 from January 1993 through October 2009 for between $100 and $400.

Parents are strongly cautioned to stop using the cribs immediately -- meaning tonight -- and find alternate sleeping arrangements for their youngster. The CPSC advises consumers to contact Stork Craft to receive a free repair kit that converts the drop-side on these cribs to a fixed side. For additional information, contact Stork Craft toll-free at (877) 274-0277 anytime to order the free repair kit, or log on to www.storkcraft.com. Please note that the Web site was unavailable when we tried to access it.

Consumer Reports has been warning about the dangers of drop-side cribs for some time and has urged industry to eliminate this design in favor of safer, fixed side models.

6 comments:

Marie said...

Maybe call the manufacturer of your cribs and ask if there is some way to convert it to a fixed-side crib? The article said Stork Craft had a kit to do that, so I bet other manufacturers do, too. Try the manufacturers website and see if there is a customer service number you can call.

We JUST got our crib, and I'm so glad we got a fixed-side one. I was worried it would be hard for my mom to reach the baby since she's so much shorter than me, but I guess that question is moot now!

Chrissy Lif said...

I can't tell you what to do but I'll tell you what I'm doing. Lukey is being moved to a toddler bed. I want like hell to keep him in the cage but I won't risk it. He's 18 months and I'm not looking forward to him climbing in and out on his own for now on but I just can't see not addressing it. The crib he's in was originally Eva's and she never had a problem obviously but I feel at this point I should retire it. He's not ready for big boy furniture yet so I bought a $50 toddler bed from walmart that uses the same matress as his crib. He's mature :-) he can handle it.

If I were you, which I'm not, so do what you feel in your heart is best, I'd move Brooke to a toddler or big girl bed and get lucas' crib fixed (using Marie's suggestion) or get a new crib. You can get something less expensive (gently used) off craigslist or maybe something free from free cycle. Then I'd contact the manufacturer and see if you can get a refund or something for both of the cribs you own.

Although you have that heart rate monitor thingie so I'm sure that would help alert you to a situation. I dunno Anet...this is a toughy...

Annette@(running)In the Right Direction said...

I am going to ask scott to call the manufacturer...

Daddy said...

Yes, I will call MFR of each.
Very scary!!!

Daddy said...

I called Behr's. Our cribs are obviously not the ones recalled, and there are no conversion kits available to make them stationary.
BUT - until we make a final decision, I will use my carpentry skills and make them stationary.

Chrissy Lif said...

Magic putty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!;-)