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More viewers tell Action 9 their Frigidaire oven glass shattered

CHARLOTTE — More people have contacted Action 9 about the glass on their Frigidaire ovens shattering, bringing the total to 19 people in the past 14 months.

Vonetta Evans lives in Rock Hill and says she didn’t want to keep her oven inside anymore after the glass shattered.

“My daughter was home. She FaceTimed me while I was at work. She was hysterical,” Evans said.

A few counties away in Midland, Shawn Graham experienced the same issue.

“We were all sleeping, and I heard an explosion go off,” she said.

Pam Rachelson-Chassen lives near Myrtle Beach and says the glass on her oven shattered too.

All 19 people who’ve contacted Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke about this issue have Frigidaire models.

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Rachelson-Chassen says she had just used her oven and it was cooling, but Evans and Graham told Stoogenke they hadn’t used theirs in days.

“So, it wasn’t even hot. We hadn’t even opened it. Nothing. It was turned off, and everything was good and dandy,” Graham said.

“This is dangerous. It’s really dangerous,” Evans said.

All three women say their ovens are only a few years old, but out of warranty. Two said they called the company anyway.

“Seeing my daughter like that, they need to recall,” Evans said. “Make it right. That’s how I feel. Make it right.”

“I think they honestly should do a recall, or even giving people money to help fix their ovens,” Graham said.

Stoogenke’s been asking Frigidaire’s parent company, Electrolux, if it is considering a recall. The company won’t say. It emailed this: “Electrolux takes the safety of its products seriously. We continue to stand by our statement and encourage consumers to reach out to us directly by contacting our Customer Engagement Center at 1 (877) 435-3287 with any specific questions they have about their appliance.”

Here is Electrolux’s statement given for previous news reports:

Electrolux takes the safety of its products seriously. Although infrequent, glass used in oven doors may break. As a precaution and as required by household cooking standards UL 825 and ANSI Z21.1 with which Electrolux maintains certifications, the glass is designed to break into fragments with rounded edges if a failure does occur. This is in accordance with independent 3rd party certification agencies, Canadian Standards Association (CSA) and/or Underwriters’ Laboratories (UL), that require tempered or ‘safety’ glass is used in all Electrolux and Frigidaire ovens.

Within the first year of purchase, failure in the glass may be due to imperfections in the glass and would be covered under the manufacturer’s warranty.

Following the first year of purchase, failure in the glass has been typically due to damage caused during use.

Frequently, damage to the glass is caused by using the door to push in the oven rack or by an object accidently hitting the interior or exterior glass. Both examples may cause a weakness that could lead to failure over time. Electrolux has, and will continue, to research and implement changes in materials, process and design to improve ranges.

Owner’s manuals included with our ovens outline precautions recommended to protect the glass from weakening over time:

Special Door Care Instructions - Most oven doors contain glass that can break.

Read the following recommendations:

1. Do not close the oven door until all the oven racks are fully in place.

2. Do not hit the glass with pots, pans, or any other object.

3. Scratching, hitting, jarring or stressing the glass may weaken its structure causing an increased risk of breakage at a later time.

If this happens to you, email Action 9 at Action9@wsoctv.com and report it to the Consumer Product Safety Commission here.

(VIDEO: ‘It was shocking’: More Frigidaire customers claim oven glass shattered)