Take Precautions When Working On Lawn And Garden This Spring

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is urging people to use caution when tending to their lawns and gardens this spring. CPSC says that, in 1992, an estimated 135,000 people were treated in hospital emergency rooms for injuries associated with power lawn and garden tools, including lawnmowers.

"Over the years, CPSC has ordered the recall of several lawn and garden products that presented a hazard to consumers, including last summer's recall of certain Lawn-Boy lawnmowers," said CPSC Chairman Ann Brown. "The Commission was instrumental in the development of a standard that took effect in 1982 for walk-behind rotary mowers. This standard was designed to protect against injuries from hand and foot contact with a moving blade," Brown continued. "Now that the Commission has taken these actions and industry is meeting this standard and recalling potentially hazardous products, the consumer also has a responsibility. The consumer's responsibility is to use and maintain equipment properly, according to manufacturer's instructions," Brown said.

When using any garden tool or piece of power equipment, CPSC recommends that consumers use the following guidelines:

-Dress appropriately for the task. This includes: long pants, long-sleeved shirts (protects from thrown objects); close-fitting clothes and no jewelry (protects against anything getting caught in moving parts); sturdy shoes with slip-resistant rubber soles; eye protection; heavy gloves (protects hands when changing, sharpening, or cleaning blades); hearing protection when using motor-driven equipment.

-Before starting, walk around the area in which you will be working to remove any objects like sticks, glass, metal, wire, and stones that could cause injury or damage equipment.

-Keep children indoors away from power equipment. Children move quickly and are attracted to mowing and other power equipment activity.

-Never let young children operate power lawn and garden equipment. Teenagers should only be allowed to operate outdoor power equipment if they possess adequate strength and maturity to do so safely. They also should be supervised by a responsible adult.

-Make sure that safety devices on the equipment are in place and functioning properly before starting work.

-Unplug electric tools and disconnect spark plug wires on gasoline-powered tools before making adjustments or clearing jams near moving parts.

-Be sure that power tools are turned off and made inoperable if they must be left unattended. This will prevent use by children.

-Handle gas carefully. Remember never to fill gasoline tanks while machinery is operating or when equipment is still hot. Wipe up spills. Store gas in an approved container away from the house. Finally, never smoke or use any type of flame around gasoline.

-Never work with electric power tools in wet or damp conditions.

-Be sure that extension cords are in good condition and are the proper size for the electrical current capacity of the tool.

-The best protection against electric shock is to use a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI). GFCIs come in four varieties, including a portable plug-in type.

CPSC is issuing this warning as part of its mission to protect the public from unreasonable risks of injury and death associated with the estimated 28.6 million injuries and 21,700 deaths associated each year with the 15,000 different types of consumer products under CPSC's jurisdiction.