Portable Playard Tents Recalled After Child Strangles to Death

About 20,000 Tots in Mind Cozy Portable Playard Tents are being recalled after a 2-year-old boy strangled to death when he became entrapped in the play pen. 

The playard tent recall was announced on Thursday by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Health Canada. The one death associated with the tents occurred in December 2008 in Vinalhaven, Maine, when a toddler was found dead after his neck became entrapped between the frame and the metal base rod.

The CPSC announcement says that the tent had been partially tied with nylon rope because the clips that attach the tent to the top of the playard had been removed or broken by the child. There have been at least three other incidents reported where children were able to remove one or more of the clips and put their necks between the tent or the playard. However, none of those other instances resulted in injury.

The recall affects all Cozy Indoor Outdoor Portable Playard Tents Plus Cabana Kits by Tots in Mind, Inc. It is a dome-shaped white mesh tent that fits over playards. It has 12 plastic clips used to secure the base of the tent to the top of the rail of the playard and has a zippered side.

The tents were sold at Wal-Mart and through Amazon.com, as well as other retailers nationwide from January 2005 through February 2010 for about $60. About 20,000 were sold in the U.S. and 85 were sold in Canada.

The CPSC recommends that consumers immediately stop using the tents and contact Tots in Mind at www.totsinmind.com for free replacement tents, which will be available in late August or early September.