Baby Gate Safety
Baby Gates
Baby gates are used at the top and bottom of stairs or in
open doorways to prevent toddlers from falling or entering unsafe
areas. But some baby gates themselves are dangerous. The
Commission warns parents and others who care for children that an
entrapment and strangulation hazard exists with accordion-style
baby gates that have large V-shaped openings along the top edge
and diamond-shaped openings between the slats. CPSC knows of
deaths that occurred when children's heads were entrapped
in the V-shaped or diamond-shaped openings when they attempted to
crawl through or over the gates. Although these hazardous
accordion-style baby gates have not been sold since 1985, you may
still find them at yard sales or in thrift stores.
If You Will Be Using a Baby Gate
[ ] Choose a gate with a straight top edge and rigid
bars or mesh screen, or an accordion-style gate with small
V-shapes and diamond-shaped openings. Entrances to V-shapes
should be no more than 1-1/2 inches (38 mm) in width to prevent
head entrapment.
[ ] Be sure the baby gate is securely anchored in the doorway or
stairway it is blocking. Children have pushed gates over and
fallen down stairs.
[ ] Gates that are retained with an expanding pressure
bar should be installed with this bar on the side away from the
child. A pressure bar may be used as a toehold by a child to
climb over a gate. Pressure gates are not recommended at the top
of stairways. CPSC is aware of a number of incidents where
pressure gates have popped out of openings at the top of stairs
resulting in children falling down stairs.
Expandable Enclosures
Circular wooden enclosures that expand, accordion-style, can
present the same entrapment/strangulation hazards as the
accordion-style gates. The Commission knows of deaths that
occurred when children caught their necks in the V-shaped
openings along the top edge of the enclosure, apparently as they
were attempting to climb out. CPSC recommends that you DO NOT USE
ACCORDION-STYLE EXPANDABLE ENCLOSURES with V-shaped or
diamond-shaped openings. | |
|
