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Hot Christmas toy turns dangerous

A Penhold mother wants to warn others after her 14-month-old son suffered second-degree burns to his hand when a child’s projection flashlight overheated.
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Heather Chiasson holds her son

A Penhold mother wants to warn others after her 14-month-old son suffered second-degree burns to his hand when a child’s projection flashlight overheated.

Heather Chiasson said she purchased the Winnie-the-Pooh-themed Disney Projection Flashlight with five lenses at the Dollarama store at Parkland Mall before Christmas. The device allows children to shine images on to a wall or ceiling.

But on Boxing Day when she gave the toy to her son Alexander to play with in his crib, he began shrieking.

“The bottom of the flashlight got so hot it melted the plastic and burned his hand, the palm of his hand.”

Chiasson grabbed the flashlight and was shocked. “It was so hot I couldn’t even touch it.”

She and her husband took her son to Innisfail Hospital, where they treated a small second-degree burn on his hand that had blistered.

“It’s obviously a pretty dangerous toy,” she said. “I’ve never seen a flashlight do that.”

Her husband emailed Disney to warn them about the problem, but the family had not heard back as of Monday.

There is no manufacturer listed on the packaging other than Disney and that it was made in China.

The flashlight, which takes two AA batteries, appears to have shorted out. The switch was turned on but the light wouldn’t come on when the incident happened.

Chiasson has tested the flashlight a number of times since and sometimes the light doesn’t come on or it flickers. So far, it has not overheated again.

Chiasson said she just wants to get the word out to others who may have purchased the toy, assuming it was a harmless play thing.

It should be taken off the shelves, she said, and she planned to take the flashlight back and to warn Dollarama.

A Dollarama manager asked to comment said she would direct the request to a district manager, who did not call. An email sent to a communications firm representing Disney also did not get a response.

pcowley@www.reddeeradvocate.com