In April 2008, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a recall of about 3,200 lithium-polymer battery chargers and lithium-polymer batteries because they pose a fire hazard. The batteries and chargers, sold by Hobby Lobby, Inc. of Brentwood, Tennessee, can reportedly ignite while charging.

Three incidents of batteries igniting have already been reported, including one claim of a person?s hand being badly burned. The recalled batteries and chargers, manufactured in China, were sold with the AT600 Falcon Helicopter kit. The recall also includes any spare battery (Model AT600B) or spare charger (Model ATS6046) purchased for this kit.

The recalled batteries and chargers were sold from April 2006 through July 2007 at Hobby-Lobby.com. They were sold for about $300 per kit, with spare chargers being sold for about $15 and spare batteries being sold for about $45.

The CPSC advises consumers to stop using the recalled chargers and batteries immediately. The CPSC also advises consumers not to return the batteries and chargers to Hobby Lobby, but to follow instructions for disposal and registration on its website.

Consumers can also contact Hobby-Lobby at 1-866-933-5972 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. CT Monday through Saturday, or visit the firm?s web site at www.hobby-lobby.com for more information.

Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission release #08-558 April 14, 2008.