The Recall Desk
Our severity:CriticalCPSC·97032·Announced 1996-11-27

CPSC Recalls Wooden Bunk Beds Due to Child Entrapment Hazard

Five manufacturers are recalling approximately 100,000 wooden bunk beds because openings on the top bunk can entrap young children's heads.

What this means for you

Our assessment, not the agency’s: severity 5/5 (Critical).

Highest-severity recall. The hazard can cause serious injury or death. Stop using the product now and follow the agency's instructions.

Our severity reasoning: The source text explicitly states that 32 children died from becoming caught in bunk beds with similar spaces, including a specific death in September 1996 involving a recalled model. The rubric mandates a score of 5 if reported deaths exist.

Plain-English summary

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a recall of approximately 100,000 wooden bunk beds manufactured by Bedder Bunk, Oakland Wood Shop, P.J. Sleep Shop, Stoney Creek, and Wholesale Importers and Exporters. The recall was initiated in cooperation with the manufacturers to address a potential entrapment hazard. The affected beds have openings on the top bunk that are large enough for a child's body to pass through but small enough to trap a child's head.

Since 1990, CPSC has received reports of 32 children who died from becoming caught in bunk beds with similar spaces in the top bunk. Thirty-one of these children were ages 3 and under. The most recent death reported in the notice occurred on September 28, 1996, involving a 3-year-old boy who became caught in a bunk bed manufactured by the Bedder Bunk Company. The voluntary ASTM standard for bunk beds requires that spaces between guardrails and bed frames be less than 3.5 inches to prevent such entrapment.

Consumers should stop using the recalled beds immediately. They should contact the specific manufacturer or retailer to obtain a replacement guardrail, retrofit kit, or instructions to eliminate the hazard. If consumers are unsure of the manufacturer or have questions, they should call the CPSC Hotline at (800) 638-2772. The manufacturers are also placing permanent labels on current models warning that children under the age of 6 should not use the upper bunk.

The recalled product

Product
Bedder Bunk wooden bunk beds
Manufacturer
Bedder Bunk
Category
Consumer Product — Furniture
Hazard

Distribution

Distributed nationwide across the United States.

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