Fire And Burn Hazards: Ozark Trail Butane Camping Stoves & Product Liability Risks
In late 2025, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a massive product recall involving 201,000 Ozark Trail Tabletop 1-Burner Butane Camping Stoves due to a large number of reports from consumers claiming the product has the ability to explode or catch on fire.
What did the recall cover?
The product involved in the recall is the Ozark Trail Butane Camping Stoves in dark green with the model number BG2247A1, single-burner tabletop stoves sold in Walmart retail stores and Walmart.com from March 2023 to October 2025 for between $8 and $45.
According to the CPSC and the notices regarding the recall, the stoves have the tendency to explode or ignite unexpectedly while in use, thus posing a greater danger of fire and burn injuries to the users. The manufacturer of the defective stoves, China Window Industry Co., Ltd., has received at least 26 reports of the stoves exploding or catching on fire, including reports of injuries from second-degree burns. Consumers who own the defective stoves are advised to immediately stop using them and take them back to the store to request a full refund from Walmart.
Understanding the hazard
The purpose of portable camp stoves that run on butane gas is to offer easy and convenient outdoor cooking and heating facilities. Nevertheless, though it is important and useful as a fuel source, butane is also highly flammable and has the potential to “shoot out” flames or explode when it is exposed to an ignition source. This is particularly worrying to users of such stoves during camping activities or when tailgating or boating. An exploding stove could prove life-threatening.
The risk was not a minor malfunction, as the Ozark Trail product failures included explosions and second-degree burns, which may necessitate medical attention, as well as a long recovery time.
Product liability: Legal concepts at play
Recalls such as these are not just safety alerts; they often enter the realm of product liability claims. Under Florida law, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers can all be held responsible when a defective product causes harm to a consumer.
There are three common theories that involve product liability when a defective product causes serious harm. These include:
- Design defect – When a product is intrinsically flawed, the injured party can claim that the product has a design defect that rendered it unfit or dangerous for normal use.
- Manufacturing defect – In this case, the injured party would allege that the product had a manufacturing defect that rendered it dangerous for normal use.
- Failure to warn – Products that pose a real danger to consumers should come with warnings that prevent the user from using the product in a way that endangers themselves.
Talk to a Florida Product Liability Lawyer Today
Halpern, Santos & Pinkert represent the interests of Florida residents who have been injured by a dangerous or defective product. Call our Florida personal injury lawyers today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin investigating your case right away.
