The Columbia Fire Department, along with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, announced Tuesday their kickoff of a fire prevention program.
Recall Round-Up 2001 is meant to publicize the fact that everyday items can be fire hazards. Richland County fire stations will become drop-off points for unsafe products until April 24.
Columbia Fire Chief John Jansen, who spoke at the kickoff at the Laurel Street Fire Station, named several household appliances that can be dangerous.
“Many products have been determined to be fire hazards — lighters, hair dryers and halogen lamps have been found to be causes of fires,” Jansen said. He added that cigarette lighters without child-safety devices can cause fires, as well.
Helen Cash of the Consumer Product Safety Commission said novelty lighters that look like cars or other toys can be dangerous because they attract children.
The CPSC said fire deaths resulting from children playing with lighters have been reduced by 43 percent since 1994. The agency has created mandatory safety standards to make the lighters difficult for children under 5 years old to use.
Halogen lamps have proven to be problematic because most are manufactured without a protective screen over the light bulb. Tissues and curtains have been known to land on top of the bulb and ignite, and children can knock the lamp over and start a fire, Cash said.
According to the CPSC, halogen lamps have caused 436 fires and 35 deaths since 1992.
“Any halogen lamp that doesn’t have a protective screen over the bulb itself should be discarded,” Jansen said.
Cash urged people to check their homes to see whether they had any of these items.
“Consumers: Do some spring cleaning,” Cash said. She said it’s essential for people to perform their own checks because homes are hard for consumer advocates to regulate.
“CPSC can get [dangerous products] off shelves, but homes are a challenge,” Cash said.
According to Cash, older hair dryers that don’t have built-in shock-protection devices should be replaced with newer ones. She said the majority of hair dryers are made with the protectors, which prevents electrocution by automatically shutting off power to the appliance in case it’s dropped in water.
The CPSC said people should also check the quality of the wires in their homes. The agency reported that frayed and damaged electrical wires cause about 5,700 fires and 40 deaths yearly.
According to Assistant Fire Chief Bradley Anderson, the most common causes of fires in the Columbia area are electrical shorts, cooking-related accidents and children playing with lighters. Nationally, household fires cause more than 3,000 deaths and 16,000 injuries, Anderson said.
Jansen summed up the purpose of the week’s activities.
“We’re all here for the safety of the public,” Jansen said.
Consumers can check the CPSC Web site for a complete list of unsafe products at www.cpsc.gov.
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