NEWS from CPSC

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

Office of Information and Public Affairs

Washington, DC 20207

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	CONTACT: Toy Box Hotline: (877) 840-7396
October 11, 2001	CPSC Contact: Nychelle Fleming
Release http://www.toyboxnews.com/en-us 02-014	(301) 504-0580 Ext. 1192
	Palliser Contact: Mary Ann Stewart
	(204) 988-3398

CPSC, Palliser Furniture Ltd. Announce Recall of Toy Boxes

WASHINGTON, D.C.- In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Palliser Furniture Ltd., of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is voluntarily recalling about 4,500 toy boxes. The toy box's lid can fall suddenly, posing entrapment and strangulation hazards to young children. In addition, spaces at the end of the hinge on the lid can cause pinched, crushed and lacerated fingers.

The toy chest voluntary standard requires toy boxes or chests with hinged lids to have lid supports that keep the lid from falling suddenly onto the head of a child, preventing an entrapment and strangulation hazard. The hinges also must minimize any spaces that could allow a child's finger to be pinched, crushed or lacerated.

CPSC and Palliser Furniture Ltd. have not received any reports of injuries or incidents involving these toy boxes. This recall is being conducted to prevent the possibility of injuries.

All the toy boxes have a manufacturer's label inside or on the back with "Palliser" and the model number written on it. The model numbers are: 580-283, 581-283, 582-283, 583-283, 584-283, 589-283 and 598-283. The toy boxes measure about 36-inches long by 19-inches wide and 21-inches high. They have the following finishes: white with small color inserts in the knobs or with large color inserts on the front panel; natural maple or natural maple with white, denim or green front panels; and natural cherry.

Furniture stores nationwide and in Canada sold these toy boxes from July 1999 through August 2001 for about $150 (about $200 CAD). Consumers should stop children from using these toy boxes immediately, and contact Palliser for a free replacement toy box or a $50 refund. For more information, consumers should call Palliser's Toy Box Hotline at (877) 840-7396 anytime or visit Palliser's recall web site at www.toyboxnews.com.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission protects the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death from 15,000 types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, call CPSC's hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at (800) 638-8270, or visit CPSC's web site at http://www.cpsc.gov/talk.html. For information on CPSC's fax-on-demand service, call the above numbers or visit the web site at http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/103.html. To order a press release through fax-on-demand, call (301) 504-0051 from the handset of your fax machine and enter the release number. Consumers can obtain this release and recall information at CPSC's web site at http://www.cpsc.gov.