WASHINGTON (AP) — People preparing for Memorial Day barbecues should avoid using Red Devil gas grills because they have a design flaw that has already caused serious burns, safety officials warned.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission said Friday that it had wanted the importer of the grills to recall about 155,000 of them, but the company — known as both Quantum North America Inc. and e4L Inc. of Encino, Calif. — has gone out of business.
The design problem allows consumers to light the grill at an air intake tube, instead of at the burner, the agency said. Though the grill appears to work normally, gas inside the tube ignites and the tube can get dangerously hot. The heated tube can also damage a plastic support piece on many of the grills and cause them to collapse.
These red metal grills have a logo on the lid showing a devil cooking at a grill and the words "Red Devil" and "The Portable Outdoor Kitchen." The black plastic base, above the tripod stand, reads "QUANTUM HOMEWARES."