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Recalled Takata Airbags Are Still Killing People

2006-08 red Ford Ranger on dirt road
2006-08 red Ford Ranger on dirt road

It’s been nearly a decade since widespread recalls of Takata airbags began. Tens of millions of cars have had their defective, potentially deadly inflators replaced, but some are still on the streets, their owners missing years and years’ worth of notices. On Thursday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration confirmed authorities’ suspicions that a death that occurred in June involving a 2006 Ford Ranger was, in fact, caused by a bad Takata airbag.

Ford claims it sent the owner more than 100 alerts through the mail, as well as text messages, and even had a representative go to their home to set up an appointment in person, per Reuters. The company also says it warned owners of all affected Rangers not to drive their trucks.

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To date, at least 23 people have been killed and 400 injured in the U.S. by defective Takata inflators, which employed an unstable chemical that could create violent explosions in the event of an accident, sending shrapnel into the cabin.