WASHINGTON, D.C. - May 24, 2002 - In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Spin Master Toys, of Toronto, Ontario is voluntarily recalling about 137,000 Firestormer and Skyblazer toy planes. The plastic air intake chamber of the air-powered toy planes can burst, throwing plastic pieces, posing a laceration, bruise and abrasion hazard to consumers.

Spin Master Toys has received seven reports of Firestormer planes bursting, including four reports of injuries to children. Injuries included one chest abrasion, a cut leg, a bruised shoulder and ringing in the ears. There have been no reports involving the Skyblazer planes.

The recalled Firestormer plane is either red or blue in color with a flame graphic across the body and "Firestormer" printed on the wings of the plane. The Skyblazer plane is purple, green and white in color and has "Skyblazer" printed on the wings of the plane. These toys use a hand pump mechanism to compress air to make the plane fly. Both planes are recommended for children 8 years old and over. The planes have an 8- digit date code on the bottom of the pump. The date code reads MM/DD/YY-KS. Only planes with date codes 12/29/01-KS through 03/24/02-KS are included in the recall. "Made In China" is written on the bottom of the pump below the date code. Planes manufactured before December 29, 2001 and after March 24, 2002 are not included in this recall.

Hobby shops and department stores nationwide, including Wal-Mart, Toys R Us, Target and K-mart sold these planes between January 2002 and May 20, 2002 for about $20.

Consumers should stop using the planes immediately and contact Spin Master Toys at (800) 622-8339 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday to receive a free replacement plane. Consumers also can visit the firm's web site at www.spinmaster.com.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission protects the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death from 15,000 types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, call CPSC's hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at (800) 638-8270, or visit CPSC's web site at www.cpsc.gov/talk.html. Consumers can obtain this release and recall information at CPSC's web site at www.cpsc.gov.