Ozark Trail Camp Stove Recall Lawsuit Claims Walmart Ignored Earlier Explosion and Burn Reports

Lawsuit claims man suffered third-degree burns that required emergency hospitalization as the result of a defective Ozark Trail camp stove.

An Illinois man has filed a product liability lawsuit alleging an Ozark Trail camp stove fitted with a Coleman butane canister exploded, engulfing him and his RV in a ball of fire.

The complaint (PDF) was brought by Darren C. Schroeder in the Circuit Court of St. Clair County, Illinois on September 17, naming Walmart Inc., The Coleman Company Inc., China Window Industry Co. Ltd., H&H Asia Group Ltd., Walmart Claims Services Inc., Taiping-Starr Holdings LLC, China Taiping Insurance Co. Ltd., and China Insurance (Europe) Consultants Ltd. as defendants. The case was removed to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois on November 6.

Schroeder claims the Ozark Trail camping stove, manufactured by Walmart, and the Coleman fuel canister were defective, allowed fuel to leak and caused the fire that engulfed his recreational vehicle.

Ozark Trail Camp Stove Recall

Ozark Trail camp stoves are portable appliances fueled by an 8.8-ounce pressurized butane canister connected to the stove’s burner by a valve and regulator assembly. The stove is manufactured and sold by Walmart as a “private label” product.

Coleman designs and manufactures butane fuel canisters that fit the stove. They are equipped with a pressure relief feature, also known as a countersink release vent. This feature is designed to perforate the top of the canister and discharge the fuel when the canister is overheated.

However, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a recall for the Ozark Trail camping stove on November 26, 2025, due to the risk of fire, explosions and burn hazards associated with the product. In the notice, federal regulators cited 26 reports of explosions and fires, including 16 second-degree burns.

Lawsuits have since been filed against Walmart, alleging a defective Ozark Trail camping stoves and Coleman fuel canisters can explode. In one complaint, a Texas man claims he suffered severe burns and permanent disfigurement from an incident involving the products.

Ozark Trail Camp Stove Injury Allegations

According to the complaint, Schroeder was using the Ozark Trail single burner butane camp stove, Model No. BG2247A1, on October 30, 2024, with a Coleman butane fuel canister in his RV to cook food. After cooking, he turned the stove off.

However, the filing claims the heat from cooking heated the canister, causing it to overheat and discharge its contents into the air. The stove’s valve, regulator and the canister connection assembly also allegedly failed to seal when the stove was in the off position. As a result, the lawsuit states that the butane gas ignited and exploded, producing a fireball in Schroeder’s RV, which engulfed him and threw him backward.

Schroeder suffered second- and third-degree burns to his legs and arms, body, chest, back and face, and was transported to the hospital for emergency treatment. He was then taken to a burn center where he underwent wound debridement and physical and occupational therapy.

The lawsuit indicates Schroeder continues to suffer from chronic pain, skin breakdown, bleeding at the burn sites, and has developed acute deep vein thrombosis of the right leg. It also says that he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and permanent disfigurement on his legs and body. Schroeder’s dog was also burned in the explosion, and his RV and household belongings were destroyed.

Schroeder alleges the stove and canister suffered from product defects and other dangers, which Walmart had knowledge of prior to the incident. He indicates that the company has published on its website reports of incidents, fires and burns that occurred as early as 2023.

Moreover, the lawsuit alleges Walmart received product returns, warranty claims, customer service complaints, incident reports, lawsuits and CPSC communications about Ozark Trail camp stove dangers, yet failed to warn consumers. Schroeder argues that Walmart put profit over safety by continuing to sell a dangerous product.

“The Stove was in a defective condition that rendered it unreasonably dangerous to foreseeable users, in that it failed to perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect when used in an intended or reasonably foreseeable manner, and the risks inherent in its design outweighed its utility.”

— Darren C. Schroeder v. Walmart Inc. et al.

The complaint raises allegations of strict products liability, design defect, manufacturing defect, failure to warn, negligent failure to warn, negligence, breach of implied warranty of merchantability, violation of the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act and negligent spoliation of evidence.

Schroeder seeks compensation for medical, hospital, surgical and psychiatric expenses, pharmaceutical and therapeutic care, loss of income, loss of earning capacity, physical pain, mental anguish, emotional distress, disfigurement and loss of a normal life.

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