A 1-year-old boy survived a fall from a fifth-floor window at a Bronx apartment building the evening of July 17. According to a report in the New York Post, the child fell out of a window at 593 Oak Terrace in Mott Haven and landed in the back of the six-story apartment building. Officials said the baby was alert and conscious when first responders arrived. The child was taken to Harlem Hospital in stable condition. One arrest was made at the scene after the incident, NYPD said. Our thoughts and prayers are with the young child and we hope he will make a speedy and full recovery.
The Dangers Children Face from Unprotected Windows
Before the introduction of New York City’s window guard law in 1976, more than 100 children fell from windows each year, many suffering life-changing injuries or fatalities. While mandatory window guard requirements have dramatically reduced these accidents, preventable falls still occur.
According to the New York City Department of Health, nine children age 10 years and younger experienced nonfatal window falls in 2024, and three of those incidents involved missing or improperly installed window guards or window-limiting devices. Most window fall incidents occur during the warmer months when families open windows for ventilation.
Responsibility of Property Owners and Managers
Under the city’s Health Code, building owners/managers must provide and properly install approved window guards in apartments where a child age 10 years or younger lives or regularly spends time. Window guards are also required in the common areas of buildings where children in that age group reside. In many cases, property owners and/or managers must also provide annual notices asking tenants whether children age 10 years or younger live in the apartment so they can determine whether window guards are required.
Property owners/managers are responsible for ensuring that window guards are securely installed and maintained in good condition. In buildings where window guards are not required, certain windows may instead be equipped with approved window-limiting devices that restrict how far the window can open while still allowing for emergency escape when necessary.
When property owners and managers fail to comply with these legal requirements, they can be held responsible for an incident where a child suffers injuries in a preventable window fall. Such accidents often result in traumatic brain injuries, fractures or serious trauma that can be difficult and costly to treat.
Compensation for Victims
If your child has suffered fall-related injuries due to someone else’s negligence (carelessness), the very experienced New York personal injury attorneys with the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you. Our firm recovered $1,100,000 as a total payout for a child who fell from a window. The landlord (building owner) in that case had not installed a window guard as required under the law. It is in the best interest of injured victims and their families in such cases to contact a very experienced personal injury lawyer before contacting the people responsible for the injuries, and definitely before contacting or communicating with any insurance company, or their lawyers, investigators, or adjusters.
For over 54 years, our skilled accident attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims get fair compensation for their losses. Our law firm recently recovered $5,600,000 for a bicyclist who was hit by a van, and $2,550,000 for another victim of a truck accident, and $3,000,000 for a pedestrian who was hit by a car, and $2,000,000 in a hit-and-run accident, and the full $1,000,000 insurance policy for a pedestrian who was hit by a truck, and $4,625,000 for a driver who was in a car and was hit by a van, and $2,500,000 for a man who fell through an improperly secured hole. We also recovered $1,500,000 for a lady who was hurt by a bus, although there was only a 1 million dollar insurance policy and we got $500,000 above that insurance policy.
We also obtained $295,000 out of a $300,000 insurance policy in compensation for the victim of a bicycle dooring accident (where a car door opens into the path of a bicyclist). One of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases. Also, we got a $1,400,000 verdict in a motorcycle accident.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury cases, negligence cases, motor vehicle accidents, slip-and-fall accidents, trip-and-fall accidents, ceiling collapse cases, lead poisoning, paraplegia cases, quadriplegia cases and medical malpractice cases including, brachial plexus palsy (Erb’s palsy) and cerebral palsy cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
Other TOLL FREE phone numbers for us are:
1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
Please visit us at: www.WORK4YOULAW.com
Source:https://nypost.com/2026/07/17/us-news/bronx-miracle-tot-falls-5-floors-but-is-carried-away-alert-and-conscious/