Kmart shopper's 'horrific' ordeal with popular Christmas product: 'Call an ambulance'

A self-professed Christmas lover was in shock after a popular Kmart purchase produced an overpowering smell when opened and led to her husband being taken to hospital, the woman claims.

At least one other customer also landed in hospital and several others have reported health complaints after buying the Mr and Mrs Claus Cotton Rich Reversible Quilt Covers. Despite insisting the "product is safe", Kmart told Yahoo News it has now pulled the product from its shelves.

A Gold Coast mum, who wishes to remain anonymous, told Yahoo she purchased the Christmas-themed quilt covers from Kmart on November 1 and couldn't wait to put them on her bed. But after taking the covers out of the packaging, she claimed she was overwhelmed with the smell of what she described as "jet fuel".

"I washed them a couple of times because the smell was horrific. Even after washing them two or three times, the smell was still really strong," she said. But desperate to get into the festive spirit, she put the sheets on her bed anyway, as well as on her eldest son's.

Mum's harrowing ordeal with Kmart Christmas quilt covers

Within days, she claims her son was suffering from asthma symptoms. And after two weeks with the sheets, her husband woke up in the early hours of the morning suffering chest pain.

"[He's] normally super healthy, he hasn't seen a GP since he was a child," the Queensland mum said of her husband. "One morning he woke up and said he was having chest pains. It's weird for him to complain. He said he might need to go to hospital which was super alarming."

The couple decided to wait an hour before taking action, but halfway through the woman's husband begged her to "call an ambulance". "He was genuinely scared," the mum recalled. Paramedics arrived and she claims crews instantly told her to take the blanket off him.

"One of the paramedics walked in and turned it over and said to get it off him," she claimed. "They had seen complaints about the blankets, and multiple cases with everything from rashes to chest pains and they all have this blanket. I thought that was crazy."

The man was taken to hospital where ECG and blood tests did not indicate that he had any underlying condition. "His chest pains resolved within the next day," she said after taking the doona off the bed.

"Now we've all just got weird burning in our eyes and stuffy noses," she said. "From what I've Googled it seems to be some kind of chemical exposure."

The mum wondered where Kmart's bed products are manufactured and "what they are being sprayed with." "Is this ongoing?" she asked. "Do their clothes have [these chemicals at lower levels] and is it making people sick?"

Other customers share concerns over Kmart quilt cover

Another Kmart shopper shared on social media their terrifying ordeal experienced after bringing home the quilt covers.

"I had a nurse call me an ambulance as the exposure to the chemicals made me quite unwell. I was nearly fainting, vomiting and other gastro symptoms, sudden sharp intense jaw and shoulder pain," one person said. "I'm now in hospital awaiting results, do not buy this!"

"I returned mine, the smell was horrible, I was told by the lady they had been removed off the shelves now," another person said. "I can't go near my laundry currently because the smell is so strong. If you've ever smelt a burning motor in a cheap pedestal fan, it kinda smells like that" wrote somebody else.

• New detail in Kmart change rooms leaves Aussies 'freaked out'

• Woolworths accused of charging double Kmart price for popular item

• Kmart shopper's shock as major receipt 'change' comes into effect

Kmart responds to concerns over 'fuel-smelling' bedding

Speaking to Yahoo, a Kmart spokesperson confirmed the sheets have indeed been removed from stores. But they stood firm on its stance that the sheets are "safe".

'We take the quality and safety of all our products very seriously. We have noted the concerns about an odour with this product," the spokesperson said. "While the product is safe, it is important to us that our customers enjoy using our products and have made the decision to withdraw the product from sale.

"As always, we encourage all our customers whenever they experience an issue with a product to get in touch with our customer service team to ensure that it can be appropriately addressed."

Yahoo specifically asked Kmart if they had any explanation for the smell detected on the bedding, how many complaints they received from affected customers and if it had a response to reports of hospitalisations. It did not directly respond to those questions.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.