Americans are being asked not to buy or use liquid-burning portable fire pits sold for tabletop or other uses after two people were killed and dozens injured.
Although sold as tabletop fire pits, fire pots, miniature fireplaces, or portable fire pits for indoor use, “these fire pits are extremely dangerous and have caused two deaths and at least 60 injuries since 2019. ,” the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced in a notice to consumers Thursday. caveat. “Consumers should immediately stop using and discard these products, and sellers should stop selling these products,” the agency said.
The warning is: An elderly couple died in June.Harm and Thelma Stoltsenburg of Dover, New Hampshire; Both were engulfed by flames from a tabletop fireplace where the family was sitting, their daughter Dee McEnany told Boston’s CBS News. “Suddenly these flames erupted, which I described as like a torch, and it completely engulfed my parents’ bodies,” McEnany said. said WBZ-TV in July.
McEneaney’s 93-year-old parents, who had been married for 71 years, died from third-degree burns every three days a week after the accident.
Hanover, Massachusetts, is also speaking out about the potential danger. Caitlin Little was given a tabletop fire pit as a gift over the summer, but shortly after installing it, it caught fire and set her on fire.
Little jumped into a backyard pool to put out the flames and was hospitalized with second- and third-degree burns all over his body, unable to move. “I was there for a total of four days receiving treatment in the burn unit. My bandages had to be changed and soaked every day, and I couldn’t get out of bed for four days. I couldn’t even walk,” Little said. spoke. “It was just horrible,” she said. said WBZ earlier this month.
Little noticed the popularity of fire pits while holiday shopping and decided to share what happened to her.
“If you search for Yankee swap gifts under $30, this is the number one gift that comes up right now,” Little said. “Various companies make them.”
The CPSC recently issued a warning against the FLIKRFIRE tabletop fireplace and issued a recall for the tabletop fireplace. Colsen brand fire pit The alarming series of incidents left 19 people with burns, some requiring surgery and others permanently disfigured.
Fire pits that require pouring isopropyl (disinfecting) alcohol or other liquid fuel into an open container or bowl and igniting the pooled liquid in the same area where it was poured violate voluntary safety requirements .
Isopropyl alcohol, ethanol/bioethanol, and similar liquid fuels burn with flame temperatures in excess of 1,600°F and can cause third-degree burns in less than one second. According to the agency, igniting a pool of alcohol or other liquid fuel in an open container in a fire pit can cause an uncontrollable pool fire that suddenly produces a larger, hotter flame that spreads beyond the fire pit product. It is said that there is a possibility.
Refilling an alcohol or other liquid-burning fire pit while a flame is present can result in a second hazard, a flame eruption. Small flames inside a fire pit are difficult to see, so if alcohol or other liquid fuels are poured, they can ignite and cause an explosion, spraying flames and burning liquids onto the consumer or anyone present. .
