Sunday Mirror

NO ALERTSUNDA­Y Failed cable Gran killed car trapped over 150 on holiday isle by fire from dishwasher Hotpoint knew was faulty for 7 YEARS

Mirror campaign over 16,000 fires

- BY PAUL HOOPER

circulatio­n – the company has shown it is not always taking the steps needed to put its customers’ safety first. “It’s further evidence of the systematic failures in the THE Mirror is campaignin­g for Britain’s product recall system to be tightened up – before more people die. Faulty white goods are said to have caused 16,000 fires since 2012. In January, the Government set up a new £12million-a-year Office for Product Safety and Standards. But MPs on the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee called improvemen­ts “painfully slow.” They also called Whirlpool “woeful” for its slow

product safety system.” Whirlpool says it alerted thousands of registered owners but was not aware Elizabeth had an affected Hotpoint Aquarius DWF30 because it was never registered with them.

A spokesman said: “We response to faults with 5.3 million of its Hotpoint, Creda, Indesit, Swan and Prolinebra­nded machines.

In 2016 we revealed one Whirlpool helpline worker quit after being ordered to say risky tumble dryers are safe.

There is still no national system to tell customers of a product recall – or a place where consumers can check if a product has a problem.

We want both. extend our deepest sympathies to friends and family of Elizabeth Griffin.

“The appliance was one of a small number of models subject to a safety alert several years ago, which were manufactur­ed between 1999 and 2003. This does not affect our products on sale today.”

A Department for Business spokeswoma­n said: “The Government’s top priority is to keep people safe. Our product safety requiremen­ts are among the highest in the world.”

Wandsworth Council said: “We acted immediatel­y to implement the coroner’s recommenda­tions.” RESCUERS saved 154 tourists trapped when a volcano’s cable car failed.

Four children were among 34 people left hanging in mid-air in a gondola for 90 minutes.

The others were stuck at a station 11,600ft above sea level for three hours.

It is believed the popular cable car service at Mount Teide in Tenerife suffered a motor malfunctio­n.

A manually operated gondola is thought to have saved the visitors at the Canary islands attraction.

A Spanish woman trapped in the gondola suffered a panic attack.

In March last year nearly 250 tourists were hit when the service broke down.

More than 100 spent the night at high altitude and about 70 tourist were lowered 250ft to safety in a dramatic four-hour rescue.

The 7,730ft base station of the cable car is at the foot of the 12,198ft dormant volcano Mt Teide, Spain’s highest point.

The mountain is in the Teide National Park, named a world heritage site by UNESCO in June 2007, which attracted more than four million visitors in 2016.

 ??  ?? CAMPAIGN Our 2016 exclusive TRAPPED Elizabeth was killed by smoke
CAMPAIGN Our 2016 exclusive TRAPPED Elizabeth was killed by smoke
 ??  ?? KILLER Hotpoint Aquarius DWF30
KILLER Hotpoint Aquarius DWF30
 ??  ?? STUCK Gondola in mid-air
STUCK Gondola in mid-air

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