Microfibre towels ‘a fire risk’

By Shaun Inguanzo
HIGHLY flammable towels targeted for sale to hair salons could catch fire and seriously burn customers, according to a Dandenong manufacturer.
Towelex Australia owner Venu Naidu this week warned hairdressers and their clients to beware of imported microfibre towels. They could easily catch on fire under constant exposure to heat, he said.
Mr Naidu said the microfibre towels, imported from China, were not flame retardant and, as a result, were highly flammable and combustible.
Mr Naidu, 62, a former aviation pilot, said there was ‘no second chance’ to prevent a tragedy from happening, prompting him to speak out.
He said the towels were made from 80 percent polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) and 20 percent cotton, giving them a quick-dry property that could be attractive to the hairdressing industry.
But Mr Naidu said a series of durability tests showed that under intense heat, the towels could catch fire and burn rapidly.
Mr Naidu said he refused to manufacture the towels at his Cheltenham Road premises and had since warned his PVOH thread supplier, who he said has discontinued importing the thread.
He said the move to warn the public was not to drive sales of pure cotton towels, but to prevent a catastrophe.
“It is better to get into the act of public safety rather than see someone’s head completely burnt,” he said.
Mr Naidu said companies choosing to sell the flammable towels should place a ‘very, very strong safety warning’ on the packaging, warning customers of the danger they posed under intense heat.