Deaths of children prompt recall of roll-up blinds and Roman shades

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The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with Lewis Hyman Inc., announced a voluntary recall of blinds and Roman shades due to strangulation deaths of children.

• Name of product: ¼” Oval Roll-up Blinds and Woolrich Roman Shades
• Units: About 4.2 million roll-up blinds and 600,000 Roman shades
• Importer: Lewis Hyman Inc., of Carson, Calif.
• Hazard: Roll-up Blinds: Strangulations can occur if the lifting loops slide off the side of the blind and a child’s neck becomes entangled on the free-standing loop or if a child places his/her neck between the lifting loop and the roll-up blind material.
• Roman Shades: Strangulation can occur when a child places his/her neck between the exposed inner cord and the fabric on the backside of the blind or when a child pulls the cord out and wraps it around his/her neck.
• Incidents/Injuries: In November 2007, a 1-year-old boy from Norridgewock, Maine became entangled and strangled in the lift cord loop of a roll-up blind that had fallen into his portable crib. In October 2008, a 13-month-old boy from Conway, Ark. was found with his head between the exposed inner cord and the cloth on the backside of a Roman shade. The cord was not looped around the boy’s neck, but rather ran from ear to ear and strangled the child.
• Description: This recall involves roll-up blinds without release clips and all Woolrich Roman shades. The roll-up blinds have plastic oval-shaped slats that measure about ¼ inch tall. The blinds measure either 72” or 96” long. The bottom rail has a WARNING label advising that “Young children can become entangled and strangle in cord or bead loops” and a label that reads “Lewis Hyman, Inc.” and the year of manufacture. Roll-up blinds that have release clips on the backside of the blind are not included in this recall. The Woolrich Roman shades come in twill fabric and micro-suede fabric and measure 72” long. The head rail has two labels that read “Lewis Hyman, Inc., www.lewishymaninc.com” and “LHI, 005301, Made in China” respectively.
• Sold at: The Roman shades were sold exclusively at Target stores nationwide and on Target.com from March 2006 through December 2008 for between $25 and $43. The roll-up blinds were sold at retail stores nationwide from January 1999 through December 2003 for between $6 and $20.
• Manufactured in: China
• Remedy: Consumers should immediately check the backside of the roll-up blinds to determine if they have release clips. If the roll-up blind does not have release clips, stop using it immediately and contact Lewis Hyman for a free repair kit
• Consumers should immediately stop using the Roman shades and contact Lewis Hyman for a free repair kit. The repair kits for the Roman shades will be available by the end of September.
• Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Lewis Hyman toll-free at (877) 354-5457 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. PT daily, or visit the firm’s Web site at www.lewishymaninc.com/recall