HARTFORD, Conn. -- State officials have pulled a toy based off on a popular TV show off store shelves statewide because it may contain asbestos.
The state Department of Consumer Protection announced on Wednesday that state officials are pulling the CSI Fingerprint Examination Kit off store shelves, which could take as many as two days.
The state said department inspectors have gone to stores statewide to remove the product, including Sears, Toys 'R Us, Kay-Bee Toys, Walgreen's, Walmart, Costco and other stores.
Test results were compiled by the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization and sent to the DCP. The state is sending information it collects to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, which may choose to issue a national recall, state officials said.
"We know that asbestos can create a lifelong health problem for anyone that gets it into their respiratory system," state Consumer Protection Commissioner Jerry Farrell Jr.
Officials said the toy contains a type of asbestos called tremolite, a durable type of asbestos fiber, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
"It's the most volatile, it's the most toxic," Farrell said. "The thing that worries me is that this product is probably under someone's Christmas tree already."
Farrell said the toxic substance is present in the toy's fingerprint powder. He said children who use the powder could blow on the fingerprint slide while playing with the toy.
"Think of how close that is to a child's nose, their mouth, their respiratory system," he said. "In effect, we're giving them asbestos to, basically, blow right into their respiratory system."
State officials recommend that anyone who has the toy should return in to the store from where the it was purchased.
If you're child has been exposed to the toy, state officials recommend having them checked by their pediatrician.
"We are now investigating how the manufacturer, Planet Toys Inc. from New York, and various retailers responded to the results of the original 18-month scientific study," Farrell said.
According to the state, the Planet Toys Inc. Web site indicated that the manufacturer has been aware of ADAO's study, and that the national nonprofit Environmental Working Group notified some retailers that the kit contained asbestos.
Anyone with questions about the recall can call the DCP by dialing
800-842-2649.
Link: What is asbestos? 
Video: Conn. Recalls Fingerprint Toy From Stores
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