More than 600,000 Chinese-made toys and children's jewelry were recalled for hazardous lead levels in Canada and the U.S., including additional products from the popular Thomas and Friends Wooden Railway line.
Illinois-based RC2 Corp. announced on Wednesday 27,000 of the affected Thomas and Friends products were sold in Canada to a number of retail stores.
The company is currently recalling five items in the Thomas and Friends line in Canada and the U.S. totalling about 200,000 toys.
The current batch of recalled toys contains high levels of lead in their surface paint.
In addition to the toys, more than 850 children's necklaces and jewelry sets manufactured Rhode Island Novelty have been recalled in the U.S. due to hazardous lead levels in some of their metal parts.
Canadian products affected by the recall include
- RC2 Corp.'s "Knights of the Sword" toys
- Happy Giddy Gardening Tools, imported by Target
- Children's Puppet Theaters, manufactured by Guidecraft Inc.
Products affected by the recall in the U.S. include:
- All Green Maple Tree Top included in the Conductor's Figure 8 Set
- All Black Cargo Car included in the Brendam Fishing Dock Set
- Toad vehicle with brake lever
- Green Signal Base included in the Conductor's Figure 8 Set
- Olive Green Sodor Cargo Box included in the Deluxe Cranky the Crane
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission sets the standard for consumer lead levels. Children's products found to contain more than 0.6 per cent lead are considered dangerous by the U.S. body and subject to recall.
"I don't think consumers have seen the end to lead paint recalls,'' Julie Vallese, a spokeswoman for the Consumer Product Safety Commission told the Canadian Press on Wednesday.
"There's been a very concentrated, concerted effort by both the CPSC and the industry to do a top-to-bottom investigation of the products to make sure they are not in violation with any toy safety standards,'' Vallese said.
"Today's recall is a result of that work.''
More than 90,000 Thomas toys were recalled in Canada on June 13 after RC2 Corp. recalled 1.5 million products because of dangerous lead levels.
Millions of toys made in China have been recalled this summer for lead contamination in the surface painted coatings.
Symptoms of lead poisoning are difficult to detect in children because they are subtle and build up gradually.
High amounts of lead can be fatal and cause damage to the nervous system, major organs or result in a coma or anemia.
Symptoms of lead poisoning include: vomiting diarrhea, convulsions, anemia, loss of appetite, abdominal pain, constipation, irritability, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, headaches and coma.
With files from The Canadian Press
