NYC Fire Commissioner Pushes Ban On Toy Lighters

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Is it a lighter meant for adult use or a toy meant for a child to play with?

Sometimes it’s hard to tell and that’s why New York City Fire Commissioner Sal Cassano and other officials want novelty lighters banned in New York State.

Some of look like toy trucks, animals, tractors, rubber ducks, or Oreo cookies. One even looks like a fire extinguisher and makes the sound of a fire engine roaring down the street.

“A child could see that extinguisher for instance or a tractor and think that he’s playing with a toy, start it, press it, he could be under his bed or she could be under their bed, they could be in a closet, and the lighter would light, naturally and the clothes or drapes or couch could catch on fire very easily,” Cassano said on Wednesday.

“Leaving a lighter like this laying around, to me, is paramount to leaving a loaded firearm when children are in the house,” said Robert Byrnes, the city’s Chief Fire Marshal. “Very dangerous.”