A 5-month-old girl clings to life at Jacobi Hospital after she and her 23-year-old mother plunged 15 stories from a Bronx apartment building early Tuesday, police and sources said.
The mother died at the hospital following the 3:38 a.m. Incident at 2550 Olinville Ave., while her infant daughter survived the fall and remains under medical care. The baby’s diaper and a white blanket remained on the ground outside the building hours later, visible behind police tape as the investigation continued.
Neighbors told police they believe the mother and baby may have been thrown from a balcony, according to law enforcement sources. Cops have identified a potential person of interest in the incident, though no details about that individual were released.
“Please don’t do this!” a tenant told WABC News she heard a woman yelling before she saw something plummet to the ground.
The resident’s account suggests a desperate plea in the moments before the fatal fall, though investigators have not confirmed whether the voice belonged to the mother or another person at the scene. Police have not disclosed what led them to identify a person of interest or whether anyone else was present in the apartment when the plunge occurred.
The building on Olinville Ave. Sits in the Allerton neighborhood of the Bronx, a residential area where the early morning incident drew a heavy police response. Officers remained at the scene throughout Tuesday morning, photographing the area and collecting evidence as neighbors watched from behind the cordoned-off perimeter.
The mother’s body was transported from the scene before dawn, while her daughter was rushed to Jacobi Hospital in critical condition. Medical staff there have not provided updates on the infant’s prognosis.
The NYPD has not classified the incident as a homicide, a suicide, or an accident, pending further investigation. Detectives are interviewing residents of the building and reviewing any available surveillance footage from the area.
The case has drawn particular attention due to the survival of the 5-month-old despite the extreme height of the fall, a circumstance that medical experts say is rare but not unprecedented in infants whose lighter bodies and more flexible bones can sometimes withstand impacts that would be fatal to adults.
Law enforcement sources said the investigation remains active and that additional details may emerge as detectives piece together the events that preceded the 3:38 a.m. Plunge. No arrests had been made as of Tuesday afternoon.