Sparking chalk alarms parents

[whopis01]

Source: WFAA-TV

Sidewalk art is creative, safe, summertime fun for two-year-old Bailey Moi. All she needs is some sidewalk chalk.

But when Bailey started drawing on the pavement, a sparkler-like shower of embers sprayed from the end of the thick chalk.

California-based What Kids Want Inc., the distributor of the chalk, told the Mois that another brand of chalk was accidentally slipped into their packaging by the manufacturer in—you guessed it—China.

The company said it has not and will not issue a recall.

Read more: http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/latestnews/stories/wfaa070824_wz_chalk.659b2c84.html

---

Toddler toys that shoot sparks? Great... no need to recall this one.

[TreasonousBastard]

1. That's cool-- I want some.

[Lochloosa]

28. My first thought

[janx]

29. SO DO I !!!!

[AnneD]

2. Exactly WHAT band of chalk.....

emits a sparkler like shower of embers. I work at an elementary school and we do chalk art all the time?
Good Lord-now I have heard everything. Must have come from the nearby fireworks factory. I can just see little Suzi blowing off her finger while filling in the flowers. :eyes:

[Neshanic]

3. Sounds like a Ren and Stimpy toy commercial. LOG and Explodo-Chalk.

[Mnemosyne]

6. hehehe n/t

[knight_of_the_star]

16. Don't whizz one the electric fence! nt

[Massacure]

33. It's log! log! It's better than bad, it's good!

I never liked Ren and Stimpy when I was little, but I do remember that little jingle for some reason. :rofl:

[Sabriel]

4. I'm waiting for Chinese-made sparklers that emit chalk.

Now THAT would be something.

[NYC]

5. Sounds and looks like a problem to me:

Strange.

[Maq]

8. Double and triple the price of that chalk

The american way. Increase the price of this chalk. Hype the sparklees aspect of this chalk.

The advertisement can show some kid in pajamas writing on the sidewalk in the evening.


Triple the price of this stuff.

[Hepburn]

24. Ummmmmmmm....

....and the kiddo is wearing 'jamas from China that are fire retardant??? Ooooooooops on that one! I am sure we can all imagine just how well that fire retardant in those Chinese 'jamas would work!

:scared:

[janx]

30. ...

:rofl:

[LisaM]

7. That is NOT okay

Kids could put it in their mouths. I know I used to.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

20. It'd be just dandy if those little sparklies landed on the dry grass next to the sidewalk...

in drought-stricken areas.

[Kali]

21. eh doubt if what was pictured would start a grass fire very easily

it takes a pretty sustained spark and wind to do it (trust me - voice of experience here)

[Drifter]

32. Or better yet ...

the puddle of gasoline in the driveway that has leaked from the car.

Cheers
Drifter

[Kelvin Mace]

9. Wait a minute!

"Another brand of chalk"???

Who the Hell using flaming chalk?

[whopis01]

26. Reminds me of Happy Fun Ball

Happy FUN BALL!

-only $14.95-

* Warning: Pregnant women, the elderly and children under 10 should avoid prolonged exposure to Happy Fun Ball.
* Caution: Happy Fun Ball may suddenly accelerate to dangerous speeds.
* Happy Fun Ball Contains a liquid core, which, if exposed due to rupture, should not be touched, inhaled, or looked at.
* Do not use Happy Fun Ball on concrete.


Discontinue use of Happy Fun Ball if any of the following occurs:

* Itching
* Vertigo
* Dizziness
* Tingling in extremities
* Loss of balance or coordination
* Slurred speech
* Temporary blindness
* Profuse sweating
* Heart palpitations


If Happy Fun Ball begins to smoke, get away immediately. Seek shelter and cover head.

Happy Fun Ball may stick to certain types of skin.

When not in use, Happy Fun Ball should be returned to its special container and kept under refrigeration...

Failure to do so relieves the makers of Happy Fun Ball, Wacky Products Incorporated, and its parent company Global Chemical Unlimited, of any and all liability.

Ingredients of Happy Fun Ball include an unknown glowing substance which fell to Earth, presumably from outer space.

Happy Fun Ball has been shipped to our troops in Saudi Arabia and is also being dropped by our warplanes on Iraq.

Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball.

Happy Fun Ball comes with a lifetime guarantee.

Happy Fun Ball

ACCEPT NO SUBSTITUTES!

http://www.happyfunball.com/hfb.html

[pnorman]

27. Happy Funball???

Thanks! I'll order one pronto!

pnorman

[janx]

31. SPARKING chalk,

not flaming chalk. There's a difference! ;-)

[BattyDem]

10. Definitely a HUGE problem (and danger) for children ...

but as an adult, I wouldn't mind having some. It sounds cool! B-)

But seriously ... what is it going to take for our government to ban all Chinese imports? How many kids are going to have to get sick or be injured ... or die? Every other week, there's a new problem. It started with the pet food and it keeps getting worse. We never had this many problems with Chinese imports before, so I'm willing to bet that BushCo changed some rules and regulations within the last couple of years and we're currently seeing the results. :grr:

[lakeguy]

15. ban will never happen...

the instant we do anything, china will dump all the us paper it has, destroying our economy.

[Hekate]

11. Definitely a fire hazard in our area. Plus: toddlers put things in their mouths.

But no product recall?

Hekate

[SecularMotion]

12. Bag o' Glass

from SNL

Consumer Reporter: Alright. Fine. Fine. Well, we'd like to show you another one of Mr. Mainway's products. It retails for $1.98, and it's called Bag O' Glass. < holds up bag of glass > Mr. Mainway, this is simply a bag of jagged, dangerous, glass bits.

Irwin Mainway: Yeah, right, it's you know, it's glass, it's broken glass, you know? It sells very well, as a matter of fact, you know? It's just broken glass, you know?

Consumer Reporter: < laughs > I don't understand. I mean, children could seriously cut themselves on any one of these pieces!

Irwin Mainway: Yeah, well, look - you know, the average kid, he picks up, you know, broken glass anywhere, you know? The beach, the street, garbage cans, parking lots, all over the place in any big city. We're just packaging what the kids want! I mean, it's a creative toy, you know? If you hold this up, you know, you see colors, every color of the rainbow! I mean, it teaches him about light refraction, you know? Prisms, and that stuff! You know what I mean?

Consumer Reporter: So, you don't feel that this product is dangerous?

Irwin Mainway: No! Look, we put a label on every bag that says, "Kid! Be careful - broken glass!" I mean, we sell a lot of products in the "Bag O'" line.. like Bag O' Glass, Bag O' Nails, Bag O' Bugs, Bag O' Vipers, Bag O' Sulfuric Acid. They're decent toys, you know what I mean?

:rofl:

[NJCher]

13. OH man, you bring back memories!!

I remember those--Dan Akroyd playing the sleazy toy mf'r!



Cher

[HysteryDiagnosis]

14. Imagine you have to write 100 times on the board (I did) I will not

do this and or that in school, and you switched chalks midstream.... ya think teacher would be calling the exorcist or something?? I mean, you could put on some pretty wild body motions just before you let the sparks fly.... heh.

[sce56]

17. The problem is Wallmart! See this other thread today about Recalled Pet food restocked!

[onehandle]

18. Ban Chinese Imports!

C'mon Wal-Mart Nation. Won't somebody think of the children?

[madmom]

19. Now I bet if this would have been done a walmart everyone would be outraged!!

[treestar]

22. We're back to the 19th century

When hearth fires might have been the culprit.

If this chalk were made in the US, it would never have done that.

Don't buy the stuff!!!! Or buy it at greater expense from higher quality manufacturers! What is it with Americans? They ought to be the most sophisticated consumers on earth!

If you must have sidewalk chalk, pay a higher price for good sidewalk chalk!

And stay out of Walmart! Go to Staples! Maybe it is more expensive there, but at least it's American!

[Hepburn]

23. Jay-zus....

...every damn time I turn around, something else from freaking CHINA is causing a problem.

[Pachamama]

25. Oh Yippee! Now my 3 yr old can have "Exploding Dora the Explorer Chalk" to go w/ her lead painted

Dora! :bounce:

Unbelievable....I think we hear each day the dangers of these various toys etc. from China and we are only touching the tip of the Ice Berg because testing isn't as prevalent as it should be. I seriously don't want to buy anything made in China anymore for my kids. But even some of the european toy manufacturers (Ravensburger from Germany for example) are making their puzzles and toys in China....It will take extra efforts to find things made here or in Europe.

Gee, and here's a novel idea - maybe my kids (all our kids) can start doing what we and other children in the world do and play and make things from the yard and nature and use their creativity???? :eyes: There is a lesson here, I just know it.