Nylint Corporation Recalls Thomas The Tank Engine Toys

WASHINGTON, DC -- In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Nylint Corporation, Rockford, IL is voluntarily recalling approximately 5,800 units of the "Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends Push-A-Long Train," model number 8841 and "Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends Shape Sorter Pull Toy," model number 8809.

When CPSC tested the toys in accordance with regulations under the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, the gray pegs on the side rods and the red latch on the back of the engine doors separated from both the "Push-A-Long Train" and the "Shape Sorter Pull Toy" while the black hitches connecting two cars separated only from the "Push-A-Long Train." All of these pieces are small parts that could present potential choking or aspiration hazards for young children.

The Push-A-Long Train consists of one Thomas the Tank Engine with two passenger cars, Annie and Clarabel. The Thomas the Tank Engine is a hard plastic blue toy which is approximately five and one-quarter inches tall, nine inches wide, and nine and one-half inches long; the body of the engine includes pictures of two engineers in the cab and has various colored components. The engine cab is a "shape sorter" with six different colored shapes (red, green, yellow, blue, white, orange). The removable black lid and the rear roof each has three holes carved in them to correspond with the shapes. A blue door with a red latch at the back of the engine provides easy access to the shapes.

The Annie and Clarabel brown passenger cars stand approximately six inches tall, four and one-half inches wide, and 10 inches long; and, each car is identified by a name, either Annie or Clarabel. The label printed on the toy's box and underneath each toy reads in part "Manufactured in China Under License to Nylint Corp., Rockford, IL 61104-5491 USA."

The Shape Sorter Pull Toy consists only of an engine which is identical in description to the Thomas the Tank Engine included with the Push-A-Long Train, with the exception that a five-inch red cord with a blue pull ring is attached to the front of the engine. The label printed on the toy's box and underneath the toy reads in part "Manufactured in China Under License to Nylint Corp., Rockford, IL 61104-5491 USA."

The toys, imported by Nylint Corporation, were sold throughout the United States in various retail stores from January 1990 to October 1990. The trains sold for $19.99 and the shape sorters sold for $9.99 each.

Neither the CPSC nor the company is aware of any injuries involving this product. This voluntary recall is being conducted to prevent the possibility of injury.

The potentially hazardous toys were identified at the Port of Chicago during a joint CPSC/U.S. Customs surveillance program.

Consumers are urged to take the toys away from young children immediately and return them to the store where purchased for a refund, or they may mail the product to Nylint Corporation, 1800 Sixteenth Ave., Rockford, IL 61101 for a full refund of the purchase price and shipping costs. For more information about this recall, consumers may contact Nylint Corporation toll free at 1-800-397-8697.

The CPSC's mission is to protect the public from unreasonable risks of injury and death associated with consumer products. The CPSC is the Federal agency responsible for consumer product safety. Some 15,000 different types of consumer products fall within the Commission's jurisdiction and each year these products are involved in an estimated 29 million injuries and 22,000 deaths.