An unidentified 58-year-old Australian man is likely the 18th death worldwide due to exploding Takata air bag inflators. Police in New South Wales say the man died in a July 13 crash in a Sydney suburb. He was hit in the neck by a metal fragment after air bags deployed in a crash. The man was driving a 2007 Honda CR-V that had been recalled to replace the driver’s air bag inflator, but it was unclear if repairs had been made. Nineteen auto and truck makers are recalling about 70 million inflators in the U.S. and 100 million worldwide because they can explode with too much force and hurl shrapnel at drivers and passengers. The deaths have occurred since May of 2009:
- May 27, 2009: Ashley Parham, 18, of Midwest City, Oklahoma, 2001 Honda Accord
- Dec. 24, 2009: Gurjit Rathore, 33, of Richmond, Virginia, 2001 Honda Accord
- Sept. 13, 2013: Hai Ming Xu, of Alhambra, California, 2002 Acura TL
- July 27, 2014: Law Suk Leh of Sibu, Malaysia, 2003 Honda City
- Sept. 7, 2014: Jewel Brangman, 26, of California, 2001 Honda Civic
- Sept. 29, 2014: Hien Thi Tran, 51, of Orlando, Florida, 2001 Honda Accord
- Jan. 18, 2015: Carlos Solis, 35, of Spring, Texas, 2002 Honda Accord
- April 15, 2015: Kylan Langlinais, 23, of Lafayette, Louisiana, 2005 Honda Accord
- July 22, 2015: Unidentified 13-year-old boy, Mercer County, Pennsylvania, 2001 Honda Accord
- Dec. 22, 2015: Joel Knight, 52, of Kershaw, South Carolina, 2006 Ford Ranger
- March 31, 2016: Huma Hanif, 17, of Fort Bend County, Texas, 2002 Honda Civic
- April 16, 2016: Unidentified person, Sabah State, Malaysia, 2006 Honda City. Inflator ruptured, no death cause determined.
- May 1, 2016: Unidentified person, Malaysia, 2003 Honda City. Inflator ruptured, no death cause determined.
- June, 2016: Unidentified person in Malaysia. Inflator ruptured, no death cause determined.
-June 19, 2016: Ramon Kuffo, 81, Hialeah, Florida. Inflator ruptured while he was repairing interior of car.
- September 24, 2016: Unidentified driver, Johor State, Malaysia, 2009 Honda City. Inflator ruptured, no death cause determined.
- Sept. 30, 2016: Delia Robles, 50, of Corona, California, 2001 Honda Civic.
-July 13, 2017: Unidentified 58-year-old man in suburban Sydney, 2007 Honda CR-V.
Sources: Associated Press archives, Center for Auto Safety, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Honda Motor Co., legal documents and police reports
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