Faulty electrical products pose fire and safety hazards
Since 1994, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has an-nounced 25 recalls involving two million extension cords, power strips, and surge protectors because they have undersized wires, loose connections, faulty components, or improper grounding–defects that can result in fires or shock/electrocution hazards to consumers. Most of these items were made in China. Some even have counterfeit Underwriters Laboratories certification labels.
In 1997, the CPSC began monitoring these types of products sold in stores across the country. It found that 72 percent of the samples it had collected from discount stores, mass merchandisers, dollar stores, and hardware chains in 83 locations around the country failed to meet current safety standards. The CPSC has also worked with U.S. Customs to monitor these products shipped to U.S. ports; many of the recent recalls resulted from this effort. The objective is to identify shipments of substandard cords before they reach store shelves.
According to the CPSC, in 1996, electrical cords and plugs were involved in about 7,100 fires that resulted in 120 deaths–about 32 percent of all deaths associated with residential electrical system fires. In 1997, more than 12,000 people were treated in hospital emergency rooms for electrical burns and shocks and about 2,500 for other injuries associated with extension cords.
