A massive recall has been ordered just days before Christmas — despite a calamitous tragedy being linked to the product all the way back in April.
The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a recall for the Pillowfort brand of weighted blankets.
The recall date is listed as December 22, 2022. The hazard description warns, “[a] young child can become entrapped by unzipping and entering the blanket, posing a risk of death by asphyxiation.”
The CPSC is suggesting customers immediately stop using the product and to get a full refund from Target, which was the exclusive seller of the Pillowfort weighted blankets.
In total, the CPSC is recalling about 204,00 units.
#Recall: @Target Pillowfort weighted blankets; A young child can become entrapped by unzipping and entering the blanket, posing a risk of death by asphyxiation. Two child deaths reported. Stop use, get full refund. Full notice: https://t.co/bK06q2GlSq pic.twitter.com/0WLUhRo6gA
— US Consumer Product Safety Commission (@USCPSC) December 22, 2022
“A 4-year-old girl and a 6-year-old girl reportedly became entrapped in the cover of the weighted blanket and died due to asphyxia at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina in April 2022. Target has received four reports of children becoming entrapped in these weighted blankets, including the two fatalities,” the product recall states.
The tragedy in North Carolina occurred in April, as the recall notes, and involved a pair of young sisters, aged just 4 and 6 years old, according to WITN.
WITN also notes that there was a third death that involved a different unnamed child at Camp Lejeune that also occurred in April, but there is no indication that the recalled product was involved in that particular death.
The tragedy of the incident is obvious and apparent, and the parents being reminded of their daughters’ death just days before Christmas seems cruel.
Making matters worse, there are still some lingering questions, chief among those being why the product wasn’t recalled sooner.
“As soon as we find out about a hazard with a dangerous product, we act to get a recall into place as quickly as we possibly can,” CPSC Deputy Director of Communications Director Patty Davis told WITN. “There’s a lot of planning that goes into issuing the recall, on the company’s side and the CPSC side.”
It’s still not the most comprehensive answer as to why there was such a gap in the product recall, but CPSC assured consumers that they are working diligently on matters like these.
“We want make sure that this doesn’t happen to any other child,” Davis said.
Raising more eyebrows, Davis noted that there were even more incidents involving the weighted blankets.
“These are blankets that a young child can become entrapped in by unzipping and entering the blanket. Target received four reports of entrapment and two of those resulted in fatality,” Davis said.
“The healthcare community hasn’t really had a chance to study it adequately yet,” CarolinaEast pediatrician Brian Livingston told WITN. “Children under five, you really gotta be careful. Children under six and seven, same thing. You really gotta think about it and make sure that’s what’s right for your individual child.”
According to the recall, the “blankets weigh 6 pounds, measure 60 inches long and 40 inches wide and have a removable, waterproof, washable cover” and are also manufactured in China.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.