On Friday, September 9, 2022, Environment, Health & Safety (EH&S) responded to a fire incident at 2000 Carleton Street resulting from a defect in a recalled “SMC” brand pedestal oscillating floor fans.
What happened?
On the morning of September 9th, a pedestal floor fan used in the mailroom of the facilities services building suddenly ignited itself, without an external catalyst, and started burning. Upon noticing the flames coming from the fan, an employee located a portable fire extinguisher and put the fire out. On scene investigation determined that the cause had to be an electrical short within the fan unit itself.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), SMC Marketing Corp., and Home Depot voluntarily recalled "SMC" brand oscillating floor fans in 2004. The electric power cord can be damaged by the oscillation motion of the fan. The damage to the cord can result in a short circuit and possible ignition of the plastic case, posing a fire hazard.
Impacted models of SMC oscillating floor fans:
The recall includes 18-inch, pedestal floor fans with model number SR-18 or SP-18. The model number is on the back of the fan beside the on/off button. All of the recalled fans are white with the brand name, "SMC," written on the face plate of the front grill. Before the 2004 recall, these fans were sold at Home Depot and other retailers, some of which have gone out of business.
Action Required:
Risk of fire can occur even if the fan is powered off– not oscillating in motion, or blades are not spinning. If your unit has one of these recalled floor fans, stop using the recalled unit, unplug from the power source, and dispose of the fan immediately.
For additional information, please refer to the CPSC, SMC and Home Depot Recall Oscillating Fans announcement, or contact the manufacturer or EH&S if you have any questions.