1-Year-Old Dies and 3 Children Are Hospitalized in Day Care Emergency

A 1-year-old boy died on Friday and three other children at a Bronx day care were hospitalized under circumstances that were under investigation, officials said.

Emergency medical workers responded to a 911 call requesting help for the children at 2707 Morris Avenue in the Bronx at around 2:45 p.m., officials said. They were met outside by two people who the emergency personnel believed to be working at the day care, officials said.

The 1-year-old boy was taken to Montefiore Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, though initial reports said he had died at the scene. A 2-year-old boy and a 7-month-old girl who were also taken to Montefiore were in stable condition Friday night.

A 2-year-old boy was taken to Bronx Health Care systems and was also in stable condition, the police said.

After the children were removed from the day care, Fire Department units tested the premises for environmental hazards and found no evidence of carbon monoxide, officials said.

State records indicate that a licensed group family day care operates on the ground floor at the address where the death occurred. A state inspection last week found no violations, records show. Calls and text messages to the contact number listed on state records were not immediately returned.

A sign on the six-story brick building where the day care is read “Divino Nino,” the Fire Department said.

On Friday evening, neighbors, on the largely residential tree-lined block, peered out of open apartment windows as the flashing light of an emergency services vehicle reflected off glass panes and investigators stood near a sealed-off, 30-foot radius around the day care’s address.

Anna Ortiz-Irving, 73, who lives next door to the day care, said she was friendly with the mother and daughter who own it. The business opened only a few months ago, she said, but they had worked hard for several months before that to update the ground-floor apartment and ensure it was up to city and state code. She said she could see inside of the day care from the street and described it as “beautiful.”

Ms. Ortiz-Irving said that a neighbor told her that sometime after 2 p.m. one of the women who operated the day care ran outside and screamed for help because she wasn’t able to wake the children up from a nap.

“Somebody called 911, but she was panic-stricken,” she said.

“I don’t know what happened,” she added. “All I can tell you is her and her mother are decent people.”

Liset Cruz and Ana Ley contributed reporting.