Following the horrific Sassoon tragedy, a local retailer stopped restocking Shabbos hotplates – the item that reportedly caught fire and fatally ignited the Sassoon home, TLS has learned.
Though it’s unknown what type of hotplate caused the fire, the large retailer reportedly rejected all new hotplate orders out of fear the items may be defective. It’s not clear if the retailer has stopped the sale of the items indefinitely.
Hotplate users are urged to ensure the product being used is UL compliant, and safe for use in U.S. homes.
[TLS]
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The ones from (moderated) are not UL complient. I have one and would like to return it.
Pure reactionary. What if the fire started in the oven? We’re gonna stop using those too?? It’s like the us government after the shoe bomber made everyone take off their shoes. A joke.
this is an emotional reaction.
its as if we are going to avoid all tragedies if we just get it right. as if we can control everything.
Anon- no this isnt hype. this is a hot plate that gets moved around and shoved around.
I checked by hot plat (i use it only when i have guest, alas very unoften) and i found that the wires where it connects to the hotplate were frayed. Yes, as a sensible person i threw it right out.
This applies to toaster ovens and everything else there is lots of electric going through the wire, any small fray can become larger with the heat and cv cause a fire.
So you would use a product that was not UL compliant? ANON shouldn’t you be thinking safety first?
These hot plates are problematic , I had times it burned the countertop sparking from the bottom and other overheating issues. Please be careful !!!
If you have access, please listen to Rabbi Wallerstein’s shiur last week in regard to this tragedy. Seven children did not have to be karbanos, a family did not have to be devastated, for all of us to throw out our hot plates! There’s got to be a more meaningful lesson you can take away from this disaster than that, please!
So when people get run over by cars, we should stop walking outside. Dont fly on a plane because there has been crashes. For Heavens sake, this was an act of Hashem, period. Dont blame the hot plate.
To No. 8 Moish:
Is it fair to blame Hashem?
#8 and a few other, yes this was min hashamayim and hashem didnt do this to teach us to check our hot plates. having said that no one is saying to get rid of our hot plates. only saying to use those which are UL compliant its the responsible thing to do. that would be called hishtadlus and not over reacting
There are 2 issues.
A) when you know something is a cause of such as tragedy, you get rid of the cause. Yes, items not tested by UL or similar reputable tersting companies are more prone to have faulty wiring and cause a fire. To continue to use such an items in ones home is reckless and endangering your loved ones and yourself.
B) yes there is a deeper message to the tragedy and we need our rabbonim and talemdie chachomim to direct us in what the message is and what we need to improve on.
At the same time don’t be reckless and play russian roulette by using faulty items…
To # 7 & 8 & everyone else
Please take this terrible tragedy and accept it as a message from Hashem that Hashem is waiting for us to do teshuva ASAP so all tzaros come to a stop
People die every day in car accidents. ..maybe we should stop driving cars??? Come on! Every bomb has an address Hashem runs this world not hot plates!!!
I heard the shiur..& many others too. I am truly amazed. of course we should take out any spiritual message from this devestating tragedy. BUT WE ALSO NEED TO LEARN TO BE CAREFUL!!!! GET SMOKE DETECTORS AND CHECK THOSE HOTPLATES!!!
Maybe reactionary but we got one of those hot plates as a gift years ago and put away to never use. I also agree, smoke alarm, hot plate? Bigger lesson to learn from this.
Moish, yes it was an act of hashem, but after 9/11 there is more security at airports. After polio there were vaccines, yes it was an act of hashem.
After pool drownings there are lifeguards and safety precautions, yes it was also am act of hashem.
No doubt everything is from Hashem. But there is still a mitzva of Ushemartem Es Nafshoseichem. Do what you can according to Teva to stay safe.
What’s done is done there is no changing the past but we can work on the future to avoid things like this. What happened is horrible but it could of been avoided. If you have a hotplate and its in use be aware of it at all times. Let’s not give the blame to the people selling the hot plates because its not their fault they’re simply selling a product. If you’re using one and don’t attend to it of course its gonna over heat and start a fire that’s a given. People just need to be more aware of their surroundings. We live to learn
@2 and 3 – We have to be aware it seems as there are hotplates going around that are not such good quality and can have electrical failures that can be fatally dangerous, we must take precautions on our part to avoid such stories. As #1 mentioned he had one that is not UL approved, that says alot if a company can’t get their product UL approved.
After speaking to a certified electrician I would like to let you know that every kitchen built to code has gfi outlets for all appliances. That means every outlet in the kitchen, except the ones for the stoves, has an extra breaker that would flip in event of a malfunction such as happened by the Sassoon family. That leaves one of 2 options; either the house was not built to code, or the more probable answer is that the GFI breaker malfunctioned. That is not a reason for all of us to stop using hot plates. Yes, they are dangerous if used wrong. Don’t leave it near a towel. Check the wires once in a while as you should do with all appliances, but don’t stop using them. The way this malfunctioned it could have been a hot water urn. Are we going to stop using those on Shabbos too?