Document pVQ791NGEnn2bXaqQwnaQZgj

" 2--A THE PLAIN DEALER. SUNDAY. MARCH 24. 1974 % Mother's alarm may bring ban of `Superelasticbubbleplastic' By Dcena Mirow product, which contains |>oly- When 6-year-old Esther vinvyl acetate, acetone pigments and plastic forti Hazlett had a coughing spell fiers, was safe for chil and complained of a burn* dren's use. ing throat after using a new toy last May, she launched a chain of events which "The packaging and label carried the following warn ings: `Flammable mixture: may result in the item being banned from the mar ket. "When something bothers me enough, I do something about it," said the child's mother, Lynn Hazlett, who was upset by her daughter's reaction after blowing up plastic balloons made from a material called "Superelasficbubblaplastic. " The Cleveland woman .wrote letters complaining about the product lo the U.S. Food and Drug Admin istration's Bureau of Trod-, uct Safety, Consumers Un ion (publisher of Consumers Reports) and the toy manu facturer, Wham-0 Manufac turing Co. In her letter, Mrs. Hazlett said she did not think the Do not use near fire or flame.' `Do not chew or swallow.' `Keep away from painted surfaces or furni ture.','' she wrote. "On the basis of this information, one would think that this item should be stored in a locked cupboard with things like ammonia and drain cleaner." She fcaid her husband closely supervised use of the toy. as suggested on the tube, but her daughter's reaction occurred anyway. Wham-0 did not reply to her letter. The FDA told her it al ready had evaluated that kind of plastic balloon and "an exemption was granted from classification as a banned hazardous sub stance." However, the Consumers Union was interested in Mrs. Hazlett's complaint and launched an investiga- 'tus PI AUNTDFAI.F.R t i o n which resulted in a lengthy petition asking the new federal Consumer Product Safely Commission lo ban the acetone plastic balloon material made by several manufacturers. The commission held a public hearing earlier this week on the plastic balloons and its decision is expected in about a month. Mrs. Hazlett's letter -- which CU credits with starting its in vestigation -- was entered as evidence. Among CU's findings: The exempt iop. granted in 1967 upon a request from Chemical Sundries Co., makers of Wonder Plastic Balloons, was given quickly with no prior published no tice and no opportunity for public comment. The FDA dining 1970 and 1971 received inquiries and complaints about Sup e r e 1 a s ticbubbleplaslic from 10 state and local government agencies, one chamber of commerce and one hospital., At least one township and one county have banned sale of the plastic ballon material. More than 40 com plaints from Individuals * Tin Plain D*alr/Nrbert J. Yoncnyi Mrs. Hazlett watches Esther play with a toy she con siders safe. have been received by the FDA and CPSC. which re cently assumed responsibili ty for this kind of product. Children in a Florida elementary school had been caught sniffing the plastic to get a "high.'' "It is clear that (he only way to use plastic balloon toys containing acetone safely is not to use them at all.'' C U lawyer Carol Cowgill said at the,public hearing. "No conceivable warning labels or insturctions could adequately pro tect a child from the una voidable, intrinsic aspira tion hazard associated with all such toys." she added. Miss Cowgill said repre sentatives of niamitaclurers who make the toys argued that millions of lubes of the plastic arc sold each year and (hat the relative num ber of complaints are few. They also said the toy was cheap and provided a lot of value for the money. Mrs. Hazlett said she is pleased with the results she got /rom her letter, but dis appointed that the govern ment agency she wrote lo did not lake an interest in her complaint. TOOSSOZ BFG23712