CT wants ‘Happy Meal' toy off the market

Connecticut's consumer protection chief is asking the federal government to act quickly to remove from circulation a McDonald's Happy Meal toy that he claims nearly strangled a Connecticut boy and that his own son had one.

Commissioner Jerry Farrell Jr. says he wrote to U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Chairperson Inez Tenenbaum about the safety risk posed by "The Last Airbender Katara" figure and bracelet given out by McDonald's.

The state agency says it received a complaint from an unidentified Connecticut consumer, detailing how her son's playing with the Happy Meal toy could have ended in tragedy,

The federal consumer safety agency is aware of Farrell's letter, CPSC spokesman Alex Filip said. The agency said it received a separate consumer complaint in early July and launched an investigation, but could not immediately say whether both complaints were from the same person.

The Connecticut consumer alleged that her son was playing with the Airbender figure and bracelet given out in a Happy Meal when he took the bracelet and put it around his neck, Farrell said.

The hard plastic ends of the bracelet allegedly cut off blood circulation to his arteries, and he began to lose consciousness.  The mother managed to remove the bracelet from his neck, averting serious harm.

"This particular complaint struck close to home for me, as my three-year old son also had this toy in his possession," Farrell said in a statement.

Farrell said he has offered to help federal product safety regulators consider ways to take the Katara toys off the market.

In a statement late Moday, McDonald's said its 'Last Airbender' promotion ended last Thursday.

It added that  "Katara" figure was evaluated by an independent third-party laboratory, accredited by the CPSC, and determined to be safe for children and in compliance with all applicable federal requirements.

"McDonald's toy safety record far exceeds the record for the toy industry overall,'' the world's largest fast-food operator based in Oak Brook, Ill., said in an e-mail statement. "Our Happy Meal toy designs undergo extensive reviews and testing by a team of safety experts, including independent testing laboratories."

So far the CPSC, Filip said, has not decided what action, if any, is necessary.