Samsung is Recalling More Than 1 Million Electric Ranges after Numerous Fire Reports

FILE - The logo of the Samsung Electronics Co. is seen at its office in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)
FILE - The logo of the Samsung Electronics Co. is seen at its office in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)
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Samsung is Recalling More Than 1 Million Electric Ranges after Numerous Fire Reports

FILE - The logo of the Samsung Electronics Co. is seen at its office in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)
FILE - The logo of the Samsung Electronics Co. is seen at its office in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

Samsung is recalling more than 1.12 million electric ranges used for stovetops after reports of 250 fires and dozens of injuries.
According to a Thursday notice from the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, these slide-in ranges have front-mounted knobs that can be activated by accident if humans or pets unintentionally contact or bump into them. That poses a fire hazard.
To date, Samsung has received more than 300 reports of the knobs activating unintentionally since 2013, the CPSC noted, and the now-recalled ranges have been involved in about 250 fires. At least 18 of those fires caused extensive property damage and seven involved pet deaths, according to the Commission.
In addition, the CPSC added, about 40 injuries have been reported, including eight that required medical attention.
According to The Associated Press, consumers can identify whether their slide-in electric range is included in this recall by looking at the model number printed on the product. Both Samsung and the CPSC have published a list of affected models online.
The recalled ranges were sold between May 2013 and August 2024 online at Samsung.com as well as in retailers nationwide — including Best Buy, Costco, Home Depot and Lowe's.
Consumers in possession of a recalled range are urged to contact New Jersey-based Samsung Electronics America for a free set of knob locks or covers compatible for installation with their model. In the meantime, those impacted should take extra caution to keep children and pets away from the knobs, and check their range before leaving the house or going to bed to make sure it's off, the CPSC said.
As part of general stovetop and oven safety, the Commission added that consumers should “never place, leave, or store anything on the top of your range” when not in use — as such items can ignite if it's accidentally activated.



New York Turns High-Tech in Warning Residents about Impending Danger from Storms

FILE - People pass the New York Stock Exchange on July 30, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)
FILE - People pass the New York Stock Exchange on July 30, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)
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New York Turns High-Tech in Warning Residents about Impending Danger from Storms

FILE - People pass the New York Stock Exchange on July 30, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)
FILE - People pass the New York Stock Exchange on July 30, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)

Gone is the bullhorn. Instead, New York City emergency management officials have turned high-tech, using drones to warn residents about potential threatening weather.

With a buzzing sound in the background, a drone equipped with a loudspeaker flies over homes warning people who live in basement or ground-floor apartments about impending heavy rains.

“Be prepared to leave your location,” said the voice from the sky in footage released Tuesday by the city's emergency management agency. “If flooding occurs, do not hesitate.”

About five teams with multiple drones each were deployed to specific neighborhoods prone to flooding. Zach Iscol, the city's emergency management commissioner, said the messages were being relayed in multiple languages. They were expected to continue until the weather impacted the drone flights.

Flash floods have been deadly for New Yorkers living in basement apartments, which can quickly fill up in a deluge. Eleven people drowned in such homes in 2021 amid rain from the remnants of Hurricane Ida.
The drones are in addition to other forms of emergency messaging, including social media, text alerts and a system that reaches more than 2,000 community-based organizations throughout the city that serve senior citizens, people with disabilities and other groups, The Associated Press reported.
“You know, we live in a bubble, and we have to meet people where they are in notifications so they can be prepared,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said at a press briefing on Tuesday.
Adams is a self-described “tech geek” whose administration has tapped drone technology to monitor large gatherings as well as to search for sharks on beaches. Under his watch, the city’s police department also briefly toyed with using a robot to patrol the Times Square subway station, and it has sometimes deployed a robotic dog to dangerous scenes, including the Manhattan parking garage that collapsed in 2023.