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CPSC, Backyard Products Announce Recall of Trapeze Swings on Backyard Gyms

Firm no longer in business. Recall remedy no longer available. Discard the product. Do not donate or resell.

  • Drawing of recalled backyard gym set with trapeze swing
Name of Product:
Acrobatic trapeze swings sold with Backyard Escapes, Backyard Products and WOW Wooden Play Centers brand gyms
Hazard:

These trapeze swings have exposed bolts that cause serious lacerations to children.

Remedy:
Dispose
No Remedy Available
Recall Date:
September 02, 1999
Units:

60,000

Consumer Contact

For further information, consumers may call CPSC's toll-free Hotline at 800-638-2772.

Recall Details

Description:

WASHINGTON, D.C. - In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Backyard Products, of Ontario, Canada, recalled its 60,000 "Acrobatic Swings," sold with backyard gym sets in the U.S., for in-home repair. These trapeze swings have exposed bolts that cause serious lacerations to children.

Backyard Products had received reports of six children suffering severe lacerations that required stitches to the arms from contact with the trapeze bolts. Injuries occurred when children dropped down from the overhead ladder, or fell or climbed onto the exposed bolts.

The recalled trapeze swings were sold with Backyard Escapes, Backyard Products and WOW Wooden Play Centers brand gyms. Each gym set comes with various equipment, which can include an overhead ladder, slide, swings, or fort. The trapeze swing has a wooden bar and rings. The wooden bar is attached to the swing chains by a "U-bolt" bracket, whose bolts are too long and extend upward above the nuts.

Department, toy, discount, lumber and hardware stores nationwide, Including Toys "R" Us, Service Merchandise, Costco and Sears, sold the gyms with trapeze swings from December 1998 through July 1999 for between $250 to $450.

Consumers should remove the trapeze swings from the gyms immediately and discard or destroy them. The firm is out of business and the repair program is no longer available.

Trapeze sets that are attached by a rope-type assembly are not included in this recall.

Consumers can also view a video clip about this recall (Transcript). It is about 20 megabytes long and the download time depends upon the speed of your Internet connection.

Remedy:

Consumers should remove the trapeze swings from the gyms immediately and discard or destroy them. The firm is out of business and the repair program is no longer available. Do not donate or resell.

Incidents/Injuries:

Backyard Products had received reports of six children suffering severe lacerations that required stitches to the arms from contact with the trapeze bolts. Injuries occurred when children dropped down from the overhead ladder, or fell or climbed onto the exposed bolts.

Sold At:
Department, toy, discount, lumber and hardware stores nationwide, Including Toys "R" Us, Service Merchandise, Costco and Sears, sold the gyms with trapeze swings from December 1998 through July 1999 for between $250 to $450.
Recall number:
99-166

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About the U.S. CPSC

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risk of injury or death associated with the use of thousands of types of consumer products. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product-related incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually. CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products has contributed to a decline in the rate of injuries associated with consumer products over the past 50 years.

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