Death sparks call to ban baby-walkers

A coroner wants baby-walkers banned after a Tolaga Bay baby died when a television set fell on his head.

Gisborne coroner Alan Hall said he would make the recommendation to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs.

He would also ask the ministry to encourage or make compulsory the sale of appropriate stands with television sets.

The court was told that Brooklyn Tautau, 10 months, died as a result of head injuries he suffered when struck by a television set that fell after he pulled a cloth under it.

The television was a flat-screen model recently bought by the family. It was sitting on a bookshelf, which had the same width as the television base.

Brooklyn's mother was dressing another child and only about 3m away when the accident happened.

Plunket's national child safety adviser, Susan Campbell, told the court Brooklyn's injuries were typical of the type suffered in accidents by infants using baby-walkers.

Plunket and other organisations had for several years called for a ban on the walkers.

In New Zealand between 1992 and 1996, more than 94 children were hospitalised as a result of injuries from baby-walkers.

The increased height and mobility that the walkers offered made infants at greater risk from burns and scalds, poisoning, and falling down stairs. Studies showed that baby-walkers did nothing to assist child development.

Television installer William Lemmon told the inquest that the Tautaus' television probably weighed more than 30kg and that the bookshelf was not designed to support its weight.

- NZPA