Chenille robe a fire hazard

WASHINGTON - Consumers are being urged to immediately stop wearing a certain type of chenille robe made by Blair LLC due to a fire hazard that is believed to have killed at least six people.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission and Blair LLC, based in Warren, Pa., yesterday said they were issuing the second recall notice in two months after receiving reports of six deaths due to the robes' catching on fire. In five of the six cases, the victims were women who were cooking at the time; three of the victims were in their 80s. The recall applied to 162,000 robes.

The robes, made in Pakistan, were sold in Blair catalogs and on the company Web site, as well as Blair stores in Warren, Pa.; Grove City, Pa., and Wilmington, Del., from January 2003 through March 2009. Consumers may return the robe to Blair and receive a refund or a $50 gift card by contacting the company at (877) 392-7095 or on the firm's Web site at www.blair.com/recall. *