Another Toddler Dies After Strangling on Window Blind Cord

ConsumerReports.org reports the following;

A two-year-old Long Island boy died Saturday (2oth March 2010) after getting his neck caught in the cord of a window blind. According to local news reports, the boy was playing with another child when he became tangled in the cord. His father and medical professionals were unable to revive him.

The report continues as follows;

This sad event underscores the dangers that the cords on blinds and shades pose to young children. Last December, the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Window Covering Safety Council joined together to “recall for repair” 50 million Roman shades and roll-up blinds. Since then the CPSC has announced the recall of 400,000 more shades and blinds. And a number of major retailers have joined the recall as well.

In the past twenty years there have been 200 fatalities from blind and shade cords, says the CPSC. Other groups say the number is higher. Parents for Window Blind Safety, an advocacy group, reports that a child dies every two weeks from strangulation on corded window treatments.

Read the story here.

Currently in the United States pressure has been forced on the Government to take notice of the needless deaths of babies and toddler each year through strangulation on window blind cords. However, the result is a massive recall of the window blinds and shades, leaving families with the choice of having no blinds at all, or replacing them with expensive cordless blinds

In the UK no such policy is in place, the Government publicly stating that it’s the responsibility of parents, blind manufacturers and fitters to ensure the safety of children. While this is a matter of common sense, the reality is very different in the home, with young children demonstrating time and again how quickly they can get into serious difficultly with the cords of window blinds and shades.

Please lend your support to our campaign to have a recognised safety device brought to market and fitting in all homes, businesses, nurseries, doctor’s waiting rooms, etc, where there are window blinds and shades present.

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Meijer, Lutron recall blinds and shades

The problems with window blinds and shades continues in North America, with two more manufacturing companies being forced to recall potential deadly products, reports the Miami Herald.

The report accurately details the problems with the window blinds and shades;

Strangulation can occur with roll-up blinds if the lifting loops slide off the side of the blind and a child's neck becomes entangled on the free-standing loop or if a child places his/her neck between the lifting loop and the roll-up blind material.

Strangulation can occur with Roman shades when a child places his/her neck between the exposed inner cord and the fabric on the backside of the blind or when a child pulls the cord out and wraps it around his/her neck.

Yet here in the UK there are no such plans to recall similar products that are in no way less dangerous than they are in North American homes. Neither are there plans to have a safety standard for such products. You're forced with either running the risk of strangulation or removing the blinds from your home.

Does this make sense?

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Is Enough Being Done to Raise Awareness of the Dangers of Window Blinds?

Shopping for her nursery, Kelly Horvath bought a new window shade because its label advertised its child safety features. She later found her 16-month-old son dead in his crib, the shade’s cord wrapped around his neck, another young victim of what U.S. government records show are some of the deadliest recalled consumer products.
"It was the hardest thing I’ve had to go through in my life," said Horvath, a stay-at-home mom in Painesville, Ohio, about the death of her son, Josiah, in February 2007. "I just take it second by second, not even day by day."(read full article here)

The Government in America has failed to take definitive action on the deadly problem of hanging cords from window blinds and shades, even though over 500 children have died in their homes over the past 20 years. Pressure is mounting here in the UK for the Government to have clear legislation and approved safety products available to worried parents who are faced with the choice of having to remove blinds and shades from their home and the expense of replacing them with something safer.

In America manufacturers don’t want new government rules, according to this article. The blinds and shades industry says it has improved safety standards for window coverings and organized educational campaigns to warn about potential dangers.

While this may be true, children are still dying, as demonstrated by the tragic deaths of two children in Staffordshire last month (February 2010). Clear guidelines, safety standards, and safety products must be launched to the market here in the UK to prevent further needless deaths.

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The Australian Government Has Recognised the Dangers

It seems the government in Australia has joined the campaign to get window blinds and shades recognised as being a hazard in the home. Their Minister for Fair Trading, Peter Lawlor, has stated that parents need to remain vigilant about the dangers of blind cords.

"These terrible tragedies highlight the need for parents and caregivers to be alert to the dangers posed by hanging blind and curtain cords that can create a loop that small children can hang themselves in," Mr Lawlor said.

"13 children have died in Australia after being strangled by cords since 2000.

"In the United States, more than 170 children have died from injuries associated with curtain and blind cords since 1991.

"The good news is that parents can do one simple thing to help prevent these tragedies."

Mr Lawlor has announced a 12 month long education campaign to raise parental awareness of the risks, injuries and deaths caused by hanging blind and curtain cords.

Read more here.

In the UK pressure is mounting on the Government to act in a similar way by publicly recognising the dangers and instituting legislation to address them.

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