This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2006, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a safety alert about paper shredders after receiving 50 reports of finger injuries, including amputation and lacerations, in a recent five-year period.
Most of the injuries involved children younger than 5, such as Hallie Mouritsen, of Kaysville, who lost three fingers in a paper shredding accident in 2003 when she was 2.
"I had just taken the shredder out of the box to use it for the first time. I left the room for a minute. And then I heard the screams," said the girl's father, Matt Mouritsen, a Weber State University accounting professor.
"The shredder grabbed her fingers and began pulling," he said. "The emergency responders couldn't get her hand out of the shredder. They put her in a helicopter to transport her to Primary Children's Hospital and we followed in the car."
When Matt and Aimee Mouritsen saw their daughter's X-rays, there was nothing left of three fingers on her left hand. "It was devastating," Matt Mouritsen said. "But Aimee reminded me that we would be taking Hallie home [unlike some parents at the hospital]."
The hardest part now is that Hallie does not understand that her fingers are gone.
"She asks when they will grow like the rest of her," Aimee said.
While the Mouritsen family will never have a paper shredder in the house again - "There are other ways to defend against identity theft," the couple advises - they want to warn other parents of the dangers. They recently described the accident and aftermath in an "Inside Edition" segment.
"I bought a 'five sheet' shredder, thinking it meant the opening was five sheets of paper wide," Matt said. "But what it means is the motor is strong enough to shred five sheets. This shredder's opening allows small fingers to fit."
"Inside Edition" also reported injuries to curious pets, and showed a dog whose tongue had been caught in the shredder.
"The dog was badly injured but did not have to be put down, like several others," said senior correspondent Matt Meagher. He added that in the 30 years he has been an investigative reporter, he has become aware of dangers from such take-for-granted household items as a stove, improperly installed and tipping over when a child stood on the oven door, and reclining chair, trapping a child.
Such accidents can happen to anyone.
"The Mouritsens," he noted, "are the type of family that has no sharp coffee table edges."
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SAFETY TIPS
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission suggests the following safety measures when using a paper shredder:
* Never allow children to operate paper shredders, even under adult supervision. Paper shredders can pull children's fingers into the shredder mechanism.
* Place the paper shredder in an area less accessible to children.
* Unplug the paper shredder power cord when the shredder is not in use.
* Do not place hands or fingers in the shredder opening.
* Do not operate a paper shredder while wearing loose-fitting clothing that may enter the shredder opening.
* Keep hair and items, such as a tie or a long necklace, away from the shredder opening.