Burger King to replace netting in play areas

By Julie Vallese
CNN Consumer Safety Editor

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The death of a 4-year-old boy prompted Burger King to announce Tuesday it will remove and replace the netting around play equipment at its U.S. restaurants.

Under the voluntary action -- announced by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and Burger King of Miami -- the restaurant chain will replace the netting with 7-foot-tall "no-climb" nets that surround and separate play areas from other parts of the restaurants.

"We applaud Burger King Corp. for launching this program to replace these nets and improve playground safety at its restaurants nationwide," said CPSC chief Ann Brown.

"No-climb" nets contain holes no larger than one-quarter inch. Burger King and other restaurants ring them around playground or play structures accessible to children. The design, which prevents children from climbing the nets, will replace the current "box" nets that have 2-inch-square holes.

Burger King said it will close playgrounds that do not have "no-climb" netting or other barriers to prevent access into non-play areas until the new netting is in place. There are approximately 3,200 Burger King playgrounds nationwide.

The change was inspired by the death of 4-year-old Raymond King, who became entangled in netting surrounding an indoor playground at a Burger King in St. Louis, Missouri, in April.

King's mother, who worked at the restaurant, had taken her three sons to work with her. The eldest said he found his little brother not breathing.

Paramedics revived him, but he died at the hospital.

The play areas at the Burger King were manufactured by Atrox Systems, Inc. and distributed under the name Tenderfun Soft Playground. Atrox went out of business in 1997.