Novelty Lighters: If Grownups Can't Tell it's a Lighter, How Can We Expect a Young Child to Know?

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, children under 5 cause more than 5,000 residential fires a year playing with lighters. Novelty lighters present a particular danger for children because they look more like toys than regular lighters, and they often lack childproof safeguards. Novelty lighters can look like toy cars, cell phones, fire extinguishers, magic markers, fishing poles and even a rubber ducky that quacks if you squeeze it. Children often mistake lighters for toys, especially if they have been encouraged to do so by adults who light them for their amusement. Many lighters are child-proof, and because they are more troublesome to light, they are the best ones to keep around houses with small children. NH State Fire Marshal J. William Degnan would like to advise parents: "If you smoke, stay away from such novelty lighters and stick with the boring kind. Keep them out of reach of children when not in use. It's not worth the risk. The added allure could mean the difference between life and death." For further information please see: www.nh.gov/safety/divisions/firesafety, www.cpsc.org and www.safekids.org

Cynthia Bautista is the Nashua Fire Marshal.