Millions Of Drivers Affected By Defective Air Bag Warning
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- More than 20 million vehicles in the U.S. are on the road with defective air bags which could possibly kill or injure drivers or passengers if they are involved in a crash.
"Her airbag deployed and a metal fragment shot out and struck her in the forehead," said South Florida Attorney Jason Turchin.
It's been three months since Turchin settled a case involving a Takata air bag that injured one of his clients who said a piece of shrapnel flew right at her forehead during a crash.
Another woman barely survived a similar situation. She said she was gushing blood and thought she was going to bleed out.
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Nine auto makers are involved in the recall.
Four deaths may be linked to the defect.
The latest was a 51-year old woman in Orlando who was driving a 2001 Honda Accord.
Authorities released the 911 call of the incident.
"The right front of her neck is severed," the caller told the dispatcher over the phone.
"Where is she bleeding from? Can you tell," asked the dispatcher.
The caller responds, "It looks like it's coming from the right side of her neck."
For those whose vehicle is on the recall list, it's important to take it in, according to an expert.
"Our data suggests that one out of every six cars on the road has a safety-related recall, whether it be for these airbags, or any other recall that hasn't been fixed yet," said Christopher Basso of Carfax.
"It's extremely important that we follow up with recalls as fast as we can all the time," said Juan Rivera of AAA.
As in previous recalls, the fixes will only be made in warm weather climates, where Takata believes high humidity makes the explosions more likely.
The widespread recall is likely to lead more people who've had a similar experience to come forward.
"Now because of the publicity that it's getting we're finding out how many cases are out there and how dangerous this could potentially be," said Turchin.
On Tuesday evening the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released a statement about the recall, saying "While Toyota is recalling a total of 877,000 vehicles, its latest recall involves 247,000 vehicles in high risk regions (i.e. areas with consistently high temperatures and humidity). These vehicles will receive a new airbag to replace the defective part. If airbag demand grows to exceed supply, these consumers will receive an interim remedy that will disable the passenger airbag and a strong warning affixed to the vehicle interior that no one should be allowed in the front passenger seat until such time that a replacement airbag is available."
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