Government Warns Firepots Can Flare Dangerously

The government is warning about outdoor ceramic pots known as firepots, after two people were burned in accidents in New York.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission wants people to use additional caution when lighting the flame on firepots.

The warning from the agency that regulates thousands of consumer products comes after reports of two incidents in the last few weeks in which the victims were pouring a gel-like fuel into the ceramic pots when they exploded in flames. Both victims, a teenager and a man in his 20s, suffered serious injuries.

Also included in the agency’s warning on Tuesday is a caution about tiki torches and the fuels used to light them.