A 3-Year-Old Boy Dies After Falling From the 29th Floor of an Apartment Building in New York City

Accidental Fall Window Fall toddler Tower Apartment fall Boy fell from 29th floor

By Camille Hutchison , Parent Herald Jul 08, 11:33 am

A three-year-old toddler died on Saturday morning after falling from the balcony of a 29th-floor apartment building in New York City. The police responded to a 911 call from the Taino Towers residential complex in Harlem around 11 a.m., where they found the toddler's body on the scaffolding on the third floor. The toddler was in diapers and a yellow shirt.

The toddler was immediately taken to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead. According to an AP News report, a police spokesperson believed that the child exited through a window and went to the balcony but how that happened is still under investigation. Police are now checking the apartment and investigating two people said to be in the building when the kid fell.

The mother's crestfallen scream as her son died

According to a Meaww report, the kid's mother, who was outside, was screaming, "My baby, my baby, he is up there" from the street below, while the father ran downstairs crying his heart out. There was a "boom" and a "thump" when the child fell.

Nidia Cordero, who lives on the 34th floor, told the New York Post that she suddenly heard a scream which she believed came from the mother of the kid. She said her kids heard a big fight between adults coming from the balcony on the 29th floor, and a few minutes later, they heard a big thump. The toddler's body was visible looking down from their terrace.

Tangerine Castro, a resident on the 23rd floor, narrated that the police and residents tried to reach the toddler, but their efforts were futile.

Preventing a child from falling out a window

A New York City law requires every owner of buildings with three or more apartments to install window guards if a child aged ten or younger lives there. It is still unclear whether window guards were installed in the apartment where the child fell.

Window guards are metal or aluminum devices designed to prevent children from falling. These guards are supposed to be installed in every apartment window and common area, excluding the windows leading to fire escapes.

A neighbor who requested anonymity revealed that the apartment where the toddler fell from had a history of domestic violence. Nevertheless, the toddler's death is being treated as accidental.

The toddler's father tried to climb onto the scaffolding to get the body of his child, but he was unable to do so, Daily Mail reported.