Family Dollar Store Toy Dart Gun Recall Issued After Two Choking Deaths

About 1.8 million Family Dollar “Auto Fire” toy dart gun sets are being recalled after two young boys reportedly choked to death on the darts. The retailer is taking this action because the manufacturer has refused to recall the toy dart guns, despite the deaths and safety risk posed to other children. 

The toy dart gun recall was announced on Monday by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), which has determined that the toys represent an asphyxiation hazard for children. The two victims included a 9-year-old boy from Chicago, Illinois, and a 10-year-old boy from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The toy dart gun sets were made by Henry Gordy International, Inc., of Plainfield, New Jersey and were sold exclusively through Family Dollar. However, Henry Gordy refused to issue the recall after the boys’ deaths were reported, and Family Dollar stepped in to assist the CPSC with the recall instead, the CPSC announcement states.

The dart gun recall affects the “Auto Fire” toy gun and target sets, which included either an orange and yellow toy gun, or a blue and yellow toy gun, eight orange darts and a small dart board-styled target. The orange and yellow toy guns have an item number of #P238 and the blue and yellow guns have an item number of #9328. The item numbers can be found on the handle in raised lettering. The packages have “Gordy Toy” and “Ages 8+” on the packaging.

The toy dart gun sets were sold at Family Dollar stores nationwide for $1.50 from September 2005 through January 2009.

The announcement is the second major recall of toy dart gun sets in recent months. In December, the CPSC announced the recall of “Action Team” toy sets by OKK International, which were sold at discount stores nationwide. That recall was announced after an 8-year-old boy from Port Arthur, Texas, choked to death.

The CPSC recommends that anyone who has one of these dart sets should immediately take them from children and either discard them or return them to Family Dollar for a full refund. Anyone with questions can visit the company’s website at www.familydollar.com.