Safety Warning from IKEA after Third Child is Killed by Toppling Chest of Drawers

A 22-month old boy was found dead under a fallen IKEA chest of drawers at his home in Minnesota. This follows the death of a 2-year-old boy from Pennsylvania in February 2014. Three months later, a 23-month-old boy from Washington was killed. All three tragedies involved the self-assembly IKEA Malm chest of drawers, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. 

The mother of the child from Pennsylvania has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against IKEA last May. Her claim is that the 60-kilogram dresser’s “defective and dangerous design” lacked proper warnings.

The Swedish furniture giant has no plans to recall the Malm chests of drawers, but continues their safety campaign that was launched in 2014 after 2 boys were killed in separate incidents. New data shows that an average of one death a year occurs in Australia, involving furniture falling on children under 9 years-of-age, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Many pieces of modern furniture are compact and lightweight. If unsecured, a child’s weight can cause it to tip over. Anchoring is recommended as a simple, affordable means of keeping young children safe.