Jardine recalls an additional 56,450 cribs with defective slats

After getting 19 new reports of crib slats breaking, Jardine is recalling 56,450 cribs sold by Babies 'R' Us, expanding its recall from last June when 320,000 cribs were recalled for that reason.

According to the recall notice issued by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the agency has received 19 additional incidents of crib slats breaking. In nine of these incidents, parents reported that their infant or toddler broke the slat while in the crib. In addition, a 22-month-old child fell through the gap between the crib slats when a slat broke. These incidents are in addition to the 42 reports of crib slats and spindles breaking that led to the original recall. In those, four children became entrapped in the space created by a broken slat or spindle and two of the children had abrasions and bruising.

Owners of Jardine cribs should check both the first and second recall notices to see if theirs is affected by the recall. They were sold at KidsWorld, Geoffrey Stores, Toys 'R' Us, and Babies 'R' Us stores nationwide, and at babiesrus.com, from January 2002 through January 2009 for between $150 and $330.

The CPSC advises parents to immediately stop using the recalled cribs and contact Jardine to receive a full credit toward the purchase of a new crib. Jardine will provide consumers with detailed instructions for purchasing cribs in retail stores and online. Contact Jardine at (800) 646-4106 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. ET Monday through Friday or between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. ET Saturday, or visit the firm's Web site.

As we reported here earlier, after the first Jardine recall, Toys 'R' Us, established its own standards for crib durability and in October began using an outside laboratory to test for structural integrity employing the stronger test methods currently used in Europe and Canada. A Toys 'R' Us spokesman said today that the cribs in the expanded recall predate those tests.

We hope this Jardine recall goes smoother than the last one when many frustrated parents wrote to us complaining about the lengthy and unwieldy process they've had to go through to get replacement cribs.

Child's death sparks investigation
The CPSC is investigating the death of a Massachusetts toddler over the holidays who became entangled in a mesh covering placed on top of his crib. According to a report in the Boston Globe, the two-year-old boy was placed in a Graco portable crib to sleep during a family vacation. Police said that the child strangled after becoming ensnared between the crib rail and a mesh top that had been placed over the portable crib.

According to news reports, the mesh top was sold separately and used with the portable crib. This sad event underscores our concerns about the risks of buying aftermarket products that may not be compatible with other baby equipment. It also give us the opportunity to repeat our adivce on crib safety: The safest crib is a naked crib.