The tragic death of a five-month-old Oregon boy in August is the second linked by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (“CPSC”) to a fabric baby hammock. CPSC is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of serious injury or death from thousands of types of consumer products, including cribs, baby beds, and other children’s products. Prompted by the latest fatality, and the reported June 2009 child suffocation death of a four-month-old Georgia girl, CPSC has now announced the recall of Amby Baby Motion beds made by Minneapolis manufacturer Amby Baby USA. The recall urges parents to stop using Amby hammocks immediately.
The recalled hammock consists of a fabric sling suspended from a spring connected to a metal crossbar. All support points are connected through a single joint above the hammock. The resulting range of motion of the sleeping surface, the inclined angle of the sleeping surface, and any motion of the baby on the sleeping surface can contribute to changes in the hammock’s center of gravity. A child may roll and become entrapped or wedged against the fabric or the hammock’s mattress pad, creating a suffocation hazard.
About 24,000 hammocks are involved in the recall, which affects baby beds sold in the U.S. and Canada. American consumers can request a repair kit from the company. Canada’s health and product safety authorities have taken what appears to be a more cautionary approach. Despite an absence of child injury or wrongful death reports related to the Amby hammock in Canada, Health Canada is directing Canadian parents that “these products should be disassembled and disposed of in such a way that they cannot be used again.”
If you believe that an Amby Baby Motion hammock or other product has injured a child, Portland injury lawyer and Oregon defective product attorney Dane E. Johnson is available to discuss your potential case free of charge and with no obligation. Please feel free to contact our law office online or call (503) 975-8298 or toll free (800) 714-3204.
Related Web Resources
CPSC, Press Release, Infant Suffocation Deaths Prompt Recall of Amby Baby Motion Beds/Hammocks (Dec. 8, 2009).
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