On June 22, 2011, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a nationwide recall of approximately half-million bottles of firepot gel fuel after reports of more than 20 horrific incidents, including two near-fatal incidents in New York.
Although the gel fuel has been recalled, the firepots and gel fuel may already have been purchased by many U.S. and Canadian consumers.
Retailers included: Bed Bath & Beyond, Walmart, Sam?s Club, Home Depot, Amazon.com, ShopKo and Restoration Hardware in addition to other smaller, local retailers, catalogs, online stores, decorators and landscapers.
One of the reported incidents involves a 33-year-old marathoner and mother of two who was slathered with flaming gel fuel after her husband tried to light a firepot during a quiet summer night at home. The victim, who was an avid marathon runner before the incident, now wonders if she will walk again.
Compared to napalm by victims, the burning gel fuel cannot easily be extinguished by dropping and rolling or covering the flaming gel with a blanket. As a result, some of the injured parties include spouses or parents who tried to help extinguish the fire on a loved one covered in burning gel fuel.