[XXX] we were camping in Maryland. I attempted to exit the motorhome through the only exit door. When I turned the door handle to open the door the handle fell off. We were not able to exit the motorhome. I called the RV Office and they sent over a maintenance man who had to open the door from the outside. The back end of the handle fell off the handle. The handle is made from aluminum and the end is rolled over there is a snap ring in a groove as cell. The snap ring groove apparently wore out which caused the whole device to fall apart. This could have been a catastrophic event in the case of an emergency. I could not locate a replacement part in the area where we are camping so I decided to fix it myself. I went to the hardware store and purchased a 5/16 by 18 tap and a drill bit and a washer and a bolt. The entire lock mechanism should be reworked to prevent a possible fatality. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
- NHTSA ID
- 11611227
- Incident
- Aug 27, 2024