Blind Xpress and CPSC recall window blinds after Michigan toddler was strangled to death

A recall of window blinds made by Blind Xpress was issued by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) after a 2-year-old child was strangled by the hanging cord.

/ CPSC

(CBS News) The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and window blind manufacturer Blind Xpress issued a recall of their custom-made window blinds after a 2-year-old girl was strangled to death by the hanging adjustment cord.

The recall will affect about 39,000 vertical and 315,000 horizontal blinds made by the Michigan-based company. They were sold in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana from January 1995 through December 2011 and retailed for $16 to $380 each.

Blind Xpress's custom vertical blinds have an adjustment cord in the shape of a loop that hangs from the top part of the frame and is not attached to the wall or floor. Their horizontal blinds lack a inner cord stop device that prevents the strings that hold the blinds together from being pulled out. In both cases, a child may accidentally get caught in the loop and strangle himself.

In 2009, a toddler from Commerce Township, Mich., was reportedly strangled by a vertical blind adjustment cord and died, according to CBS station WWJ in Detroit.

The CPSC said that consumers who own a recalled Blind Xpress product should stop using it and contact the Window Covering Safety Council (WCSC) to receive a free repair kit. The WCSC can be reached at [phone] or online at www.windowcoverings.org

[Gavin717]

...not to mention that this is an American-made product. How much do you think this recall is going to chip away at the minimal profits this company is pulling in....this company that supplies Americans (not Chinese) with jobs.

[ree-moot]

Protecting everyone from every possible hazard in life is impossible. Some common sense, even ingenuity on the installers' or parent's part would go a long way. The gigantic lawsuits/recalls of products just increases the price to purchase items.

[omnibus66]

Sorry, but you can't make the world 100% safe for kids, or anyone else for that matter. Small objects, sharp objects, electrified objects, hot objects, loose objects, danger everywhere. Kids are going to get into things, and some of them are going to get hurt, and yes, even killed. It's part of growing up, and unless someone is eyeballing them 24/7, which generally isn't possible, bad things can happen. We are an overly litigious society, and the lawyers are always looking for deep pockets. Sure, you really feel for the parents when something like this happens, but I'm sure they sued and got a lot of money, and can you really put the blame entirely on the dangling cord?

[Well_You_Aint_Me]

"and can you really put the blame entirely on the dangling cord?"

In this case probably. The manufacturer could/should look for ways to shorten the cord to above toddler height. A geared system, where the chain or cord has to make two or three revolutions through the device to open or close the blinds, would work. Or how about the rod system used in many hotel rooms?

And I agree with you that it is difficult to watch the child 24/7, but that is a parent's responsibility, isn't it? Who else does a PARENT THINK is responsible for taking care of and WATCHING THEIR CHILD?

[Rod_Smith]

"how freaking hard is it to shorten a damn cord yourself???"

Not very hard. I do that with all the blind cords on my blinds when I put them up.

How is the manufacturer supposed to know what's "above toddler height" for the blinds on your windows in your home?

[UForgotPoland]

Bad parenting kills more children than blinds.

[ralphing]

A two year old was left alone long enough for it to play with the cord, decide to put it around its neck, then slowly strangle itself over a 5-10 minute period until it died?

I wound up our cords to keep the dog from chewing on them. Why wouldn't you do that to keep a child from either strangling itself or from possibly pulling the the entire fixture on top of their head?

[ajk_cbsnews]

Perhaps it is worth mentioning that the example picture has a baby hanging 1-2ft off the floor. A baby is more likely to get killed by lightning. Another example of paranoia runs deep...

[Rod_Smith]

"more likely to get killed by lightning"...or drown in a 5 gallon bucket, or die from getting accidentally stabbed with a pencil.

[OmegaWolf747]

So because some irresponsible parents didn't monitor their kid, 300,000 blinds that were perfectly safe for 16 years are suddenly dangerous?

[MegaProcrastination]

This isn't the first time this has happened. I remember WAY back in the day when my kids were young, and they're in their twenties now, a child being strangled by one of these cords that was hanging over their crib. There was a big to-do in the newspaper about making sure cribs weren't in front of those blinds.