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An Exploding Whipped Cream Dispenser Killed a Fitness Blogger

Rebecca Burger was 33

French fitness and fashion blogger Rebecca Burger died on Sunday after a faulty exploding whipped cream dispenser hit her in the chest, leading to cardiac arrest. French authorities told 20 Minutes that the incident happened on Saturday in her home, and though firefighters revived her, she arrived at the hospital unconscious. She died the next day. In a statement posted to Burger's Facebook page, her family called her death a "domestic accident,” and on her Instagram, they warned about the dispenser. “Here is an example of a siphon that exploded and crashed into Rebecca’s chest, causing her death,” the post, translated by The Independent, reads. “The siphon which caused her death was sealed. Don’t use this product in your homes! Tens of thousands of the faulty devices are already in circulation.”

Whipped cream dispensers use nitrous oxide canisters. When pierced by a pin, the gas is released, which pressurizes the dispenser. However, according to The Washington Post, this isn't the first time a seemingly innocuous kitchen gadget has turned deadly:

“According to the consumer magazine, 60 Millions, two people were gravely injured in 2014 by whipped cream canister dispensers in France. A 2014 news release by the French economy ministry advised people to be cautious when using cream dispensers: ‘Since 2010, several models of kitchen syphons, also called cream syphons, have turned out to be dangerous and led to home accidents.’...The BBC reported that in 2013, one victim of an exploding cream dispenser told RTL radio: ‘I had six broken ribs, and my sternum was broken. At the hospital, I was told that if the shock and blast had been facing the heart, I would be dead now.’”

Burger reportedly used a dispenser made by Ard’Time, which has since been recalled after reports that the plastic head could blow up and fly off, according to their website.