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| | | | | | | | Beware of Deadly Toys! |  | By Tom Kiurski
How many times have your children noticed an item in the checkout line of a store or on the counter of a gas station and asked you to buy it for them? Well, check closely, because some of those objects meant to attract their interest could kill them, as well as other individuals in the house. The items in question are the lighters that are being sold today, with no age restriction on buying them.
These aren’t the lighters we saw when we were younger. The rectangular chrome exterior that opened and exposed the mechanism that started a fire are being replaced by a much cooler-looking lighter that entices young children to play with them. One lighter is shaped like a fancy pen, and even writes! But when the top is flipped back, a flame shoots out. Another looks like a cellular telephone. When you push the button on top that looks like a retracted antenna, the “phone” rings three times before erupting in a two-inch flame.
Other lighters shaped like fun toys include one that looks like a miniature fire extinguisher (ironic, isn’t it), a toy car with wheels that move, a miniature adjustable wrench, a replica of a motorcycle and one that does a fancy sparkling light show through its clear case before sending fire into the air.
I shudder to think how many parents may have purchased these novelty lighters for their children and didn’t know of their inherent danger. Statistics from the NFPA (National Fire Protections Association) tell us that fireplay is the leading cause of fire deaths among preschoolers. In 1998, child-playing fires caused an estimated 232 civilian deaths and 1,085 injuries in the United States alone. Most of the people killed by child-playing fires are under six years of age, although the victims of these fires are not limited to the children who play with fire. When children play with lighters, the fatal victims are often younger siblings or playmates of the children who start the fires.
To get an idea of the potential problem that can be caused by lighters, approximately 20 million lighters were reportedly sold in 1997. One study suggests that most multi-purpose lighters have a useful live of less than one year. More expensive lighters can have a substantially longer life, perhaps several years. Since a large number of lighters can be refilled and reused, the life expectancy of the lighter increases. Therefore, these potentially deadly items may lurk in homes for years before erupting into fatal fires.
In light of the risks of injury and deaths associated with lighters, the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) has published a Notice of proposed rulemaking to help educate the public about the testing required of lighters. The entire document is available for viewing at www.cpsc.gov. With so many lighters coming in from other countries to so many stores, it is hard to gain full compliance with the rule. Your best bet is to be educated about them.
The CPSC Publication entitled “Requirements for Cigarette Lighters, 16 C.F.R. Part 1210” defines lighters as “a flame-producing product that consumers commonly use to light cigarettes, cigars, and pipes, although it may be used to light other material.” It further defines disposable lighters as “a lighter that is either: one that cannot be refilled with fuel, or one that uses pressurized liquefied hydrocarbons and has a Customs Value or price from the manufacturing factory under $2.00 (this value can be adjusted every five years, as necessary).” The document defines novelty lighters as those lighters with additional features that make them attractive to children under five years of age.
The CPSC Rule covers disposable and novelty lighters and requires generally that:
1. at least 85% of the children who test a surrogate (dummy) lighter in the manner described must not be able to make it work;
2. the mechanism or system that makes the lighter child-resistant must reset automatically each time someone tries to light the lighter;
3. the child-resistant mechanism must not impair the safe operation of the lighter when the lighter is used in a normal and convenient manner;
4. the child-resistant mechanism must work properly for the reasonably expected life of the lighter; and
5. users must not be able to easily override or undo the child-resistant mechanism.
It is very difficult for anyone to determine if a lighter in their local store meets the rule, so it is important that citizens are warned of the hazards that are presented by lighters that may be brought into their homes. Firefighters can bring along examples of these lighters when they meet with adult groups in the jurisdiction, such as PTA/PTO groups, homeowners associations or service groups. In my fire department, Livonia (MI) Fire & Rescue, Fire Inspector Randy Tromblay purchased some novelty lighters and mounted them in a carrying case that can be easily transported to any requesting group for display. The wooden case was painted after the lighters were mounted, and it looks great.
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