Emma's Garden Polka-Dot Girls' Dresses Recalled Because of Choking Hazard

A recall has been issued by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission in conjunction with TJX Companies, Inc. covering Emma’s Garden Polka-Dot Dresses after reports that the decorative buttons on the front of the dress can fall off and become a choking hazard. Over 21,000 of the dresses were sold in the U.S. at T.J. Max and Marshalls.

The dresses were sold between March of 2010 and April, 2011. There are three decorative buttons on the front of the dress that can become detached and pose a choking hazard for small children. Anyone who purchased this type of dress should return it to the store for a full refund.

The risk of strangulation and choking is a leading cause of injury and death for small children. It ranks as the fourth leading cause of death for children under the age of 5. One child dies from choking every five days in the U.S. and more than 10,000 more are treated in hospital emergency rooms. The small size of a young child’s trachea (windpipe) plays a key role in children under 5 being so susceptible to choking accidents. The trachea of a child is about the diameter of a straw, which makes it very easy to become blocked.

The choking hazard posed to small children is increased because they tend to put everything into their mouths. Small toys and other objects that can fit in a child’s mouth should be kept out of the reach of small children because they cause many choking incidents. Many toys carry labels that indicate the appropriate age for the toy and warn of being a choking hazard to small children. Parents should not rely on labeling alone and should make an independent determination of the potential danger to their child.

Certain types of household objects and toys have been shown over time to pose a substantial choking risk including small balls, marbles, mini-marshmallows, popcorn kernels, grapes, uninflated balloons, coins, flat round batteries, sticky candy, pen lids, small hot dogs and similar shaped and sized objects. Many times it can be hard for a parent to determine if a particular object poses a choking risk. However, most stores that sell products for children carry standard small parts cylinders that can be used to determine if a particular object poses an unreasonable choking hazard.

There are a number of safety measures that parents can take to reduce the risk of their child choking on a foreign object including:

• Never leave children unattended when they are eating
• Insist that children eat in a seated upright position
• Avoiding feeding children foods shaped like peas or grapes without mashing them up
• Do not allow small children to have small toys like jacks or small bouncy balls
• Monitor toys with small parts that older children leave around the house
• Never give a small child a toy that carries an age indication for older users

Any parent that has ever experienced a choking accident involving their child knows how dangerous and frightening such an incident can be to observe. While many times these scary experiences do not result in injury, they can be fatal. It is important that parents are vigilant to keep defective toys with small parts or parts that may break off away from small children. If your child has been injured or you have lost a child to wrongful death, our experienced Georgia product liability attorneys may be able to help you seek money damages for your child, including punitive damages that are designed to punish the company that placed the dangerous toy on the market.

Our Atlanta product liability attorneys are available to assist clients throughout all of Georgia and the Southeast, including but not limited to Albany, Athens, Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Gainesville, Macon, Marietta, Rome, Roswell, Savannah, Smyrna, Valdosta, Warner Robins and all smaller cities and rural areas in the state. No matter where you are located our attorneys are just a phone call away, and we will even come to you. Call us 24 hours a day/7 days a week for your Free Consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333). You can also visit us online at www.montlick.com and use our Free Case Evaluation Form or 24-hour Live Online Chat.