WASHINGTON - Nearly 2 million Summer Infant video baby monitors were recalled Friday after being linked to the strangulation deaths of two infants.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission says the electrical cords on the monitors can be dangerous for babies if placed too close to their cribs.
According to the commission, a 10-month-old girl from Washington, D.C., died in March when she strangled on the cord of a Summer Infant monitor camera that had been placed on the top of the crib rail. In November, a 6-month-old boy from Conway, S.C., strangled in the electrical cord of a baby monitor placed on the changing table attached to his crib.
The commission and Summer Infant are also aware of a 20-month-old boy from Pittsburgh who nearly strangled on a camera cord that was mounted to the wall in reach of the child.
In all, about 1.7 million monitors - more than 40 different models of handheld, digital and color monitors - are being recalled by Summer Infant.
The company will provide new on-product warning labels and instructions about monitor placement.