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Dec 5, 2008 1:16 am US/Eastern
I-Team: Playing with Fire?
Only one state has ban on novelty lighters
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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Toy-like lighters are causing concern among both fire officials and parents.
CBS
"It's a funny looking frog," declares Lt. Sierra Elkin of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue who is not amused by the "ribbiting" novelty lighter he gingerly holds in his hand. As he presses down on the tiny worm that sits atop the frogs head...a burning hot spit of fire streams from the frogs mouth.
"These appear to be toys to anyone, adult and child alike. And as we all know, any child would be attracted to this toy, and whether a child knows it's a lighter or not, they'll soon find out if they push the right button," said Elkin who considers these the wrong item in the hands of any child.
They are adorable looking...a menagerie of animals including rubber duckies, elephants, even a dalmation wearing a fire hat. But a concerned Lt. Elkin knows that a "button" often difficult to find on the lighter, when pushed can lead to disaster, as a flame, in some cases more than an inch long, shoots out.
"Now, what could this flame do to a child? Well, at the very least, a minor burn. But, potentially as well, a very serious burn and even death to this person," cautioned Elkin.
All too true for the Edwards family of Arkansas, their 15-month-old and 2-year-old died after setting fire to their apartment with a motorcycle shaped lighter. Fire officials say these novelty lighters are responsible for devastating injuries, deaths and accidents across the country.
Elkin describing the scenario as the flame escapes from a miniature skateboard, little girl's pocketbook, or the hat of a musical snowman.
"But if we're not sure where this is, where (the flame) comes from, either from the side or the top, and we push this button arbitrarily, or the trigger, and this flame extends, maybe have this nearby some curtains, or rug, a bed spread, their own hair or clothes, and when this lights, that's where disaster starts," concluded Elkin.
"But how about using this in the proximity of flammable gasses. Let's say near a gas stove top or near chemicals that are flammable. Even a bigger danger then. We have a threat of explosion," Elkin said.
And so, fire departments nationwide are just now trying to set up a national reporting system to document the dangers of lighters, that in most states can be sold on store shelves. Maine was the first state to pass a ban on such lighters.
CBS4 ordered nearly a dozen from the internet.
"These all came in the mail, which means anybody could have bought these and have them delivered to their home," says Elkin, who is convinced, "these should not be available for sale. If these get in the wrong hands, they can definitely cause a death-type disaster."
The State of Maine was first to pass a ban on the sale of these lighters, a handful of statewide and local ordinances are pending around the country.
According to the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, cigarette lighters should be child resistant - but according to Fire Fighter Officals many are not. Europe has banned the sale of such novelty lighters.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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