The products have reportedly been sold between 2002 and 2025 at retailers nationwide. Here's the list, and the details.
Walmart Has Posted a Product Recall for Reported Fatality Risk
Published on Jul. 21, 2025
Monday’s news of longtime sitcom star Malcolm-Jamal Warner’s unfortunate passing, with some details first reported by TMZ, might help bring to light a broader trend: Deaths by drowning have risen since 2020. Some experts have said it’s due to fewer Americans accessing swimming lessons since the start of the Covid pandemic, while others cite incidence of flash floods. A representative for the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center shared Red Cross-reported data indicating that drowning is the leading cause of accidental death among autistic children.
Vigilant drowning prevention is essential for all ages. Monday, July 21, Walmart posted a time-sensitive notice published by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) for “Certain Above-Ground Pools 48-Inches and Taller Due to Drowning Hazard; Nine Deaths Reported; Five Million Pools Sold Since 2002.” The report states that nine children, between 22 months and three years old, have drowned in California, Florida, Michigan, Missouri, Texas, and Wisconsin. Three similar events occurred, but it sounds as though the children may have been saved in those incidences.
The pool brands under recall are reportedly Bestway, Intex, and Polygroup. It’s reported 266,000 of the products were sold in Canada, and apparently all were manufactured in China. The CPSC notes the specific issue that seems to present danger is: “The compression strap that surrounds the outside of the pool legs may create a foothold, allowing a child access to the pool, posing a drowning risk.” The post shows a photographic image of a child climbing the outside edge of the pool and gaining access in a fashion that could cause a head-first tumble into the water.
The CPSC notice states that the remedy for the issue is a repair, which the notice details as:
“Consumers should immediately contact Bestway, Intex, and Polygroup to receive a free repair kit consisting of a rope that attaches to each of the vertical support poles at the ground level and wraps around the pool. The rope will maintain the structural integrity of the pool (a function previously served by the compression strap). Consumers should first secure the repair and then cut and remove the compression strap from the pool.”
The notice adds that the products had been sold dating back to 2002 and as recently as 2025 “at stores nationwide, including Walmart, Target, Sears, Lowe’s, Kmart, Toys “R” Us, Sam’s Club, The Home Depot, Big Lots, Costco and BJ’s (among others), as well as online at Amazon.com, Wayfair.com and Bestway USA, Intex, Funsicle and Summer Waves websites.”
Details for pursuing the repair kit are available at the CPSC link. Earlier in the summer, Florida pediatrician Dr. Meghan Martin posted an educational video about drowning danger. “Drowning is a leading cause of death for children one to four years old, and no one thinks it’s going to be them until tragedy strikes,” Dr. Martin said, adding: “It’s not like you see in TV or the movies. It’s silent, it’s completely silent. There’s no thrashing around or screaming, it’s just—they slip into the water and that’s the only sound.”
And, as Malcolm-Jamal Warner’s story reminds us, little ones aren’t the only ones at risk.
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