The defective Takata airbag inflator has confirmed to have caused another death when a stationary Honda Accord was repaired in the US
Honda has announced that one more victim has been claimed due to the Takata airbag explosion. The Japanese auto major’s US arm confirmed of the matter as it said that a male lost his life back in June last year in relation to the Takata airbag rupture. However, unlike other common scenarios like a fatal accident, this death had unfortunately occurred when a Honda Accord was not moving.
The brand said that the male was doing some kind of repairs inside the cabin of the Accord with a hammer when the ignition of the vehicle was turned on. During an unexplained situation, the hammer led to the triggering of the airbag and metal fragments were spread throughout the inside according to a report from The Detroit News.
The Takata airbags are devoid of a certain drying agent and therefore caused a number of incidents due to the ruptures prematurely. Most of the reported deaths were on Honda vehicles as they erupt with too much force and send metal fragments piercing the body and there in causing fatal incidents mainly to the driver. These vehicles were termed as “unsafe and need to be repaired immediately” and the probe led to recalls worldwide.
Honda said in a statement that it was difficult to determine the death cause in this fatal incident as the inflator rupture cannot be single-handedly blamed or the interaction of the hammer with the deploying airbag. As the reason may never be fully discovered, Honda considered this as the 11th confirmed fatality in its vehicles related to Takata airbag inflator ruptures in the United States.
Takata’s defective airbag inflators have led to a total fatal death of 17 people globally and just in the US 180 were reportedly injured. The company was totally affected and filed for bankruptcy in the US and Japan last month. It agreed to sell its assets to a Chinese-based firm called Key Safety Systems for $1.59 billion.