According to the Consumer Products Security Commission, remember that millions of pools on the ground sold in the main retailers from all over the country are withdrawn after the death of nine children.
Bestway, Intex and Polygroup, along with the CPSCHe announced the withdrawal of approximately 5 million groups on July 21, citing a danger of drowning.
The CPSC said that there have been nine deaths of children between 22 months and 3 years after the children obtained access to the swimming pools through the support points. Children’s deaths occurred between 2007 and 2022 in California, Florida, Michigan, Missouri, Texas and Wisconsin.
The CPSC said that it also knows of three additional incidents that took place in 2011 and 2012, where the children who had accessed the pools had previously reported that they used the compression straps to enter the pools.
Bestway, Intex and Polygroup are removing around 5 million swimming pools over the ground because pools compression straps can create a support point for children to access the pools, which leads to the risk of drowning.
Consumer Product Safety Commission
Bestway, Intex and Polygroup are removing around 5 million swimming pools over the ground because pools compression straps can create a support point for children to access the pools, which leads to the risk of drowning.
Consumer Product Safety Commission
The memory impacts certain pools on the ground that have been sold since 2002. The withdrawal pools are 48 inches or higher and have compression straps that run along the outside and on the vertical support legs of the pool.
The compression strap can create a support point, giving a child another way of climbing the pool, apart from using the pool staircase and, therefore, it can represent a risk of drowning even when the staircase is removed, according to the companies.
In a statement to ABC News, Bestway, Intex and Polygroup said that “they have a shared commitment to customer safety.”
“Although most of the pools on the ground 48 inches or higher in height that are currently sold today this concern has already been addressed, to ensure that these changes can be applied to all the pools on the ground sold since 2002 that are 48 inches or higher in height, we jointly announce a voluntary retreat in the United States Consumer Safety Commission (CPSC) and Health Canada, the three companies said partly. “The safe use of our products is important for us, and we are working together to run the voice on this retirement and create a perfect process for our customers to participate.”
Customers who have removed swimming pools are recommended that children cannot access the unattended pool or drain the pool until a repair can be installed.
Customers can communicate with Bestway, Intex and Polygroup to get a free repair kit for a withdrawal pool. The repair kit includes a rope that adheres to each of the vertical support posts at ground level and wraps around the pool, which “will maintain the structural integrity of the pool.” After securing the rope, customers are asked to cut and eliminate the pool compression strap.
The withdrawal pools, which were made in China, were sold in stores throughout the United States, including Big Lots, BJ’s, Costco, Kmart, Lowe’s, Sam’s Club, Sears, Target, The Home Depot, Toys “R” US and Walmart. They were also sold online on Amazon.com, Bestway USA, Intex, Funicle and Summer Wave Website, and Wayfair.com.
The withdrawal pools cost approximately $ 400 to more than $ 1,000, depending on the size and model of the pool and any additional accessory.
A list of removed swimming pools is available in the CPSC website and Bestway website and Intex website.
