1.7m video baby monitors recalled after two infant deaths

Nearly two million video infant monitors are being recalled across the United States after two incidents in which infants became entangled in power cords and died.

A six-month-old boy from Conway, South Carolina and a ten-month-old girl from Washington, DC died in incidents in which they were able to reach the cords in their cribs. A 20-month-old boy from Pittsburgh was also involved in an entanglement incident, but was freed before any serious harm befell him.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) released a statement indicating that the company is not offering refunds, but is offering a repair kit:

Summer Infant has initiated a campaign to provide new on-product labels for electric cords and instructions to consumers with the recalled video monitors distributed between January 2003 and February 2011. The baby monitors were sold at major retailers, mass merchandisers, and juvenile products stores nationwide for between $60 and $300. They were sold in more than 40 different models, including handheld, digital, and color video monitors. All video monitors include both the camera (placed in the baby’s room) and the hand held device (some models have two hand-held devices) that enable the caregiver to see and/or hear the baby from a specific distance. The brand “Summer” is found on the product.

Since 2004, six infants in total have died due to asphyxiation after being strangled by baby monitor power cords.