Kmart shopper's urgent warning after $5 product 'smashes everywhere'
The mother of three has an important message for fellow customers.
An Aussie mum is sending an urgent warning to other parents following a "very concerning" incident with a popular Kmart toy. Chelsea is urging shoppers to "be careful" after her 3-year-old twin girls and 1-year-old son were lucky to escape injury while playing with the Sensory Toybox Giant RainMaker Toy, a plastic cylinder filled with hundreds of tiny beads.
The $5 toy is designed for ages 3 and up and is meant to engage little ones with the "relaxing sounds of a rain storm", but it proved a stressful item for Chelsea. She claims that while her daughters were playing with the item, they dropped it from less than a metre high, causing the cylinder to crack open and send beads flying across the room.
Chelsea, a registered nurse from New South Wales, says the situation escalated when her son swallowed several of the beads. "My twins were playing with the toy in our living room, it was dropped as they started to run around, and that's when the plastic cracked and beads just went everywhere," she explained to Yahoo News Australia.
"As I was cleaning up the tiny beads, my 1-year-old kept putting them in his mouth, and I just couldn't keep up with cleaning and keeping the kids away at the same time. I honestly was really concerned. I didn't know if these beads expanded when in water or if they were toxic."
Luckily, Chelsea was aware of the signs to look for if her son did get sick from the beads, however she's now urging others to avoid bringing the Giant RainMaker Toy into their home.
Not the first time
After sharing her experience on Facebook as a warning to other parents, Chelsea soon discovered she wasn't the only one to experience a problem with the Kmart toy. "My son's one split in the first 15 minutes! I thought maybe he was just too rough. But maybe they're faulty," another customer responded.
"Same with ours, kids dropped them and beads went everywhere! I'm still finding them weeks later because they kept bouncing on the tiles," added another.
Several others said their Giant RainMaker Toy had "lasted just one day" while some called on Kmart to take immediate action to prevent accidents. "Needs to be recalled ASAP. What a dangerous toy," commented one shopper.
Kmart responds to customer
Chelsea says she has been in contact with Kmart about the incident, with a store representative telling her they're investigating the matter.
The mum of three says she's not interested in a refund but wants others to be aware of the potential danger the toy poses. "I just want it to be known how easily this toy can break and be ingested," she said. "I'd recommend not buying this toy for your little ones or investing in a good quality brand instead."
Kmart Australia has not responded to Yahoo's requests for comment.
Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
