Recently, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) re-announced a previous recall from 2008 regarding close to a million drop-side cribs manufactured by Delta Enterprise that have “Crib Trigger Lock and Safety Peg” hardware. The re-announcement was issued after a 7-month-old infant’s death in 2009 was reported to the CPSC when the infant became entrapped and suffocated between the crib’s mattress and the detached drop-side. The crib had been purchased used and was lacking safety pegs in the bottom tracks of the crib.
When the recall was initially announced in 2008, the CPSC alerted consumers of an 8-month-old infant’s death who had gotten trapped and suffocated when the drop-side of the crib detached. The crib was missing safety pegs. There were also reports of two other entrapment incidents and nine detachments in cribs that were missing safety pegs.
When a drop-side crib is missing safety pegs, an environment is created in which the crib’s drop-side rail is able to disengage from the track, creating a dangerous space in which an infant is able to be trapped and could suffocate. Parents are warned by the CPSC not to purchase cribs used, as the cribs may not come with the parts necessary to ensure a child’s safety.