3 major products recalled for fire, lacerations, listeria

There seems to be a spate of product recalls lately that may be part of your summer go-to products. 

Let's start with a charger that has been linked to two house fires.

A $40 portable charger often used for phones that was sold exclusively at Costco is being recalled. The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the myCharge charger is responsible for 120 reports of overheating. The recall notes claim it was responsible for two residential fires resulting in $165,000 in property damage. Users had been returning them to Costco complaining of melting, expanding, smoking, exploding, burning, sparking and fire. No injuries were reported.

    myCharge POWER HUB All-In-One

  • Hazard: Fire Risk
  • Units: 567,000 recalled
  • Models: AO10FK-A, AO10FK-B, and AO10FK-C
  • Remedy: Return to myCharge
  • Notes: Sold at Costco January 2022–November 2023

This portable charger sold at Costco needs to be retired. A serious fire risk exists.  (Consumer Product Safety Commission)

Consumer Contact information from CPSC: myCharge toll-free at 888-251-2026 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, by email at compliance@mycharge.com, or online at https://mycharge.com/pages/power-hub-all-in-one-recall or www.myCharge.com and click on "RECALL INFORMATION" at the bottom of the page for more information.

Nothing says summer like fresh fruit smoothies. And one of the best in the business is the Vitamix blender. But here's a notable recall. The blade can separate from the base, exposing the blades, and has caused 27 lacerations. There was a partial recall going back to 2018. This is adding in more blenders, bringing the total to 569,000. The company says there is an easy-to-do repair.

     Vitamix Blenders and Bases

  • Hazard: Lacerations
  • Units: 569,000 recalled
  • Models: Vitamix Ascent Series and Venturist Series with the 8-ounce and 20-ounce containers and blending bases. Sold with blender or sold separately
  • Remedy: Repair

Consumer Contact information from CPSC: Vitamix toll-free at 855-215-5178 from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. CT, Monday through Friday, email at service@vitamix.com, or online at www.BlendingCupBowlRecall.expertinquiry.com or https://www.vitamix.com/us/en_us and click on "Product Recalls" at the top of the page for more information.

And, finally, if you are a summer ice cream eater, this recall involves more than 60 products by the food manufacturer Totally Cool. There is a potential for listeria contamination of well-known products from Chipwich, Friendly's, Hershey's, and Jeni's ice creams. The FDA reports no illnesses, but listeria can be very dangerous for pregnant women.

You can return your product to the store for a full refund. You may also call Totally Cool if you have questions: 410-363-7801. The FDA has provided a list of all the products here.