The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, in its role as National Authority for Consumer Protection, initiated an administrative investigation against eight businesses in the city of Cali, due to an alleged illegal sale of balloons inflated with other gases other than helium, the only gas authorized by law for this purpose.

The SIC initiated the investigation due to the requirements of Article 6 of the Consumer Protection Law, which obliges producers and suppliers to guarantee the safety of the products that they make available to consumers.

The inspection visits were carried out with the support of “Laboratorio de Pruebas Hidrosáticas SA”, who made technical evaluation reports of the suspicious cylinders. Those technical evaluations indicated that the cylinders didn´t contained helium gas, rather they contained a mixture of water and other substances whose chemical reaction generates a flammable and highly explosive gas.