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Recalls pose extra hazard
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November 21, 2001: 12:44 p.m. ET
22 million recalled products still in homes, posing extra holiday hazard.
By Julie Vallese
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WASHINGTON (CNN) - More than 22 million recalled products may still be in Americans' homes, many of them toys and children's products likely to be brought out for use during this holiday season, federal regulators warned Wednesday.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a "recall roundup," urging parents and grandparents to check the CPSC list of recalled products to see if anything in their home is included. All listed items should be placed out of reach of children.
CPSC noted this is the time of year when toys designed for older children are shared with younger relatives and grandparents or holiday hosts may unpack recalled products from the attic.
Included on the list are products named in some of the CPSC's largest recalls or consumer alerts during the past year, including toys recalled because they pose choking or suffocation hazards.
Among the recalled products are Zapper Toys, which have a small balloon that can detach from the toy, posing a choking hazard, and a rattle manufactured by Sassy that has sewn-on fabric eyes that can come off and be swallowed, causing choking.
Another item, a swing by Little Tikes, has buckles that can detach, allowing children to fall to the ground. Approximately 250,000 of these seats have been recalled.
Even the storage chests in which some of these toys might be kept could be dangerous. Lane cedar chests were recalled because they have an automatic latch that could trap a child inside. There have been 10 reports of children suffocating in the chests. There are millions of these chests in homes across the country, the CPSC said.
Approximately 1.5 million Safety 1st booster seats have been recalled because they can separate and cause a child to fall to the ground. There have been 32 reports of chair separation, seven resulting in injury.
Both the Evenflo Joyride Car Seat Carrier and the Century Car Seat Carrier have handles that can break, causing infants to fall to the ground. There are millions of these products on the market.
The Baby Trend Portable Play yard and the Cosco Playpen both pose a suffocation and entrapment hazard to children. There have been five deaths associated with the Baby Trend Play Yard and one with the Cosco Playpen. Both have faulty locking mechanisms that allow the rails to collapse.
The Twister portable lamp gets too hot and presents the risk of burn injuries or house fires. There have been five injuries and 12 reports of property damage.
CPSC's Web site - http://www.cpsc.gov/ -- has a full list of recalls and procedures for owners of the items to follow. 
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