The death of a 5-month-old baby has prompted an Illinois children’s safety equipment manufacturer to recall over 200 thousand of its infant travel beds.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced Friday, the recall in cooperation with KidCo Inc. of about 220,000 of the Pea Pod Travel Cribs after reports of one infant’s death and nine others entrapped or distressed while inside the portable sleep tents.
According to the recall notice, the Pea Pod travel crib contains an “inflatable air mattress [which]helps protect kids from cold, damp floors while providing a comforting place to sleep.”
There is a flaw in the product’s design, however, as infants and young children can roll off the edge of the inflatable air mattress, become entrapped between the mattress and the fabric sides of the tent, and suffocate.
HuffPo reports that’s what’s believed to have happened to a 5-month-old New York City baby, who was put in the travel crib with his twin sister for a nap while visiting family in December 2011.
In response to Pea Pod’s flawed design, KidCo is offering kits to address the danger. The kits include supports that strengthen the sides of the tent and a thinner air mattress. Together they prevent the pocket from forming.
Ken Kaiser president of KidCo said:
“Safety is what we’re known for and it’s what our reputation is built on. The concern was more of a design issue as to how the product mechanically works. The kit adequately addresses that.”
For more information on the Pea Pod Travel crib recall or to receive a repair kit, consumers are urged to contact KidCo toll-free at (855) 847-8600 or visit the company’s website at www.kidco.com.
The kits will vary depending on the model and will be shipped to consumers starting in December 2012.
The following model numbers (found on a small tag on the underside of the product) and corresponding tent fabric colors are included in the 2012 recall:
P100 Teal P101 Red P102 Lime P103 Periwinkle P104 Ocean P201 Princess/Red P202 Camouflage P203 Quick Silver P204 Sagebrush P205 Cardinal P900CS Green
