Safety checks on tables

ABOUT 350 children's folding tables have been seized by Customs and Excise officials who will investigate whether they can trap and suffocate a small child.

At least eight children were suffocated playing with folding tables between 1984 and 1989, according to coroners' reports, triggering concern and a Consumer Council campaign.

John Chan Kwok-wah, head of the Customs and Excise trading standards investigation bureau, said the tables had been seized under powers granted in October by the Consumer Goods Safety Ordinance.

Children who turn the tables over and use them as toys can get their heads trapped between the legs which then can snap shut and strangle them, he said.