Liquid-Burning Firepits Leave Couple Dead, Dozens Injured: 'It Was Horrible'
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a consumer alert pointing to the portable liquid-burning firepits as a “hazard” to consumers
US Consumer Product Safety Commission
Liquid-Burning Fire PitsPopular liquid-burning firepits have been named as the source behind the death of a New Hampshire couple and the injuries of others.
On Thursday, Dec. 19, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a consumer alert pointing to the portable liquid-burning firepits as a “hazard” to consumers, saying the products “violate the requirements in voluntary safety standard ASTM F3363-19.”
“Stop using alcohol or other liquid-burning fire pits that violate voluntary standards and present flame jetting and fire hazards,” the message from the Consumer Product Safety Commission read. “Consumers should immediately stop using and dispose of these products. Sellers should stop selling these products."
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Herm and Thelma StolzenburgRelated: N.H. Woman Warns About Tabletop Fire Pits After Her Parents Die: 'Hope I Can Spare Another Family'
In June, New Hampshire residents Herm and Thelma Stolzenburg were both engulfed in flames after a tabletop firepit shot out flames while they were sitting around with their family, CBS News reported.
The couple, who were both 93, tragically died a week after the fire left them with severe third-degree burns, according to the outlet.
A month after her parents’ death, daughter Dee McEneaney told local CBS affiliate WBZ-TV, "All of a sudden, these flames shot out and like a blow torch, is all I describe it as. That totally took over both my parents' bodies."
The Stolzenburgs weren’t the only ones severely burned by the liquid-burning firepits. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said in its alert that there have ben at least 60 injuries since 2019.
Related: South Carolina Couple Found Dead in 'Extremely Hot' Home Where Heater Measured Over 1,000 Degrees
According to CBS News, Katelyn Little from Massachusetts also found herself engulfed in flames but survived.
After setting up the firepit, Little told WBZ-TV that she had to jump into the nearby pool to put out the flames, resulting in being hospitalized with second- and third-degree burns.
"I was there for a total of four days being treated by the burn unit, with daily dressing changes and soaks and I didn't get out of bed for four days. I couldn't walk. It was just, it was horrible," Little told the outlet.
On Oct. 17, the Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled close to 90,000 Colsen-branded firepits after dozens of people reported similar burn injuries.
“Use of the recalled fire pits can lead to injury quickly and unexpectedly, causing burns in less than one second, that can be serious and deadly,” the organization said in a message on its website.
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