8th US Death Due To Takata Air Bag Explosion Identified
BALTIMORE (WJZ)--Exploding airbags are now being blamed for another death here in the United States.
Federal investigators have tentatively linked a deadly accident that took the life of a Pittsburgh teenager to the defective airbags.
The teen's death comes as the recall for those airbags grows even larger.
WJZ's Meghan McCorkell has the latest.
Federal officials didn't identify the teen driver killed outside Pittsburgh, but all signs point to a July crash in a 2001 Honda Accord.
A 13-year-old boy somehow got ahold of a relative's keys and lost control. He died a few days later.
"This young person's death is tragic and it underscores why we're continuing to work so hard to get these defective inflators off the road," said Gordon Trowbridge, National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The child is the 8th death tentatively linked to Takata airbags in the U.S..
The airbags explode with such force they can send metal shrapnel flying into cars.
"It was terrifying. I thought I was going to bleed out," said Stephanie Erdman.
The Federal Government has fined Takata a record $70-million and that number could grow to $200 million if the company violates a settlement agreement.
19-million cars in the U.S. have been recalled. Now, federal officials have expanded the Takata recall, which was already the largest in nation's history.
"No one deserves to have an exploding airbag installed in their vehicle," said Mark Rosekind, of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Several hundred thousand more cars have been added to the list.
Federal officials say the speed of repairs is accelerating.
As of December 4th, 27 percent of defective driver's side airbags have been repaired, along with 26 percent of passenger's side.
But officials say there are still vehicles under recall with parts available for repairs that have not been fixed.
They're urging drivers to get their airbags replaced as soon as possible.
NHTSA has also announced a new independent monitor to oversee the Takata recalls.
For more information on the recall CLICK HERE.
