A New York couple who endured multiple miscarriages is grieving the devastating loss of their long-awaited daughter, who fell from an apartment window and died.
Chayanne Polanco and Thessa Wilcox lost their two-year-old daughter, Julia, in an apparent accident at their Bronx home on Tuesday night.
The toddler fell from a fifth-floor window after removing the plastic accordion-style side panels from a window air-conditioning unit, CBS New York reported.
Police said Julia squeezed through the opening left behind by the missing panel and fell into a concrete alley behind the building.
Building superintendent Jose Sosa discovered the child lying face down and unresponsive. He said he tried to revive her.
Paramedics transported Julia to Harlem Hospital in critical condition, but she later died from her injuries.
The NYPD told Our News Outlet that no arrests have been made. The investigation is continuing, although authorities do not believe the incident involved criminal activity.
Wilcox, who told ABC 7 that the couple had tried for years to have a child, said through tears: “I can’t believe she’s gone.”
Julia Wilcox Polanco, 2, died Tuesday night after falling from a fifth-floor window at her family’s Bronx apartment. Source: Sameria Black Crow/GoFundMe
Chayanne Polanco, left, and Thessa Wilcox, right, are mourning Julia, their long-awaited daughter after a miscarriage and years of trying to conceive
The grieving mother said she briefly stepped out of the room at about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday. When she checked the baby monitor, Julia was no longer visible.
“I saw on the monitor she wasn’t there, and I ran back. She was gone, and she was out the window,” Wilcox told the news outlet.
Polanco was away from home when the incident occurred. He said he could hardly believe the call informing him about the fall.
“I thought it was a hoax. I thought it was someone else. But they kept insisting that I should go to Harlem Hospital,” he said.
The family is struggling to cope with the loss, and Wilcox has reportedly found it difficult to get out of bed.
In an interview with CBS, Polanco urged parents to cherish every moment with their children, warning that no one knows when a final goodbye may come.
“Hold ’em. Hold ’em. Love ’em. Because you may never know when they’re gone,” he said. “Make sure you tell them you love them every night. Make sure you hold them.”
The couple reportedly installed the air-conditioning unit themselves. Superintendent Sosa said the side panels had been held in place only with tape.
Polanco, pictured with Julia and another loved one, said he could not believe the call reporting the accident. “I thought it was a hoax. I thought it was someone else,” he recalled. Source: Sameria Black Crow/GoFundMe
Wilcox, pictured with Julia and other relatives, has struggled to leave her bed as she grieves her daughter’s death
Julia fell from a window in this apartment building after removing the plastic side panels from a window air-conditioning unit and slipping through the opening
A professional installation would typically secure the panels with a combination of screws, mounting tracks or frames, and pressure-sensitive adhesive.
Wilcox and Polanco said only some windows in the apartment had window guards—metal bars spaced no more than four inches apart and designed to prevent children from falling.
The window Julia fell through was not protected by a guard, the couple said.
New York City law requires owners of buildings with three or more apartments to install window guards when a child under 10 lives in a unit.
Property owners who fail to comply can receive violations and face fines.
A makeshift memorial now marks the alley where Julia was found.
Relatives have also launched a GoFundMe campaign to help cover funeral expenses and other costs.
Julia, a member of the Northern Arapaho and Oglala Lakota community, will be buried on her family’s burial plot in Wambli, South Dakota.
Superintendent Jose Sosa found Julia unresponsive and lying face down in the alley behind the building. A makeshift memorial has since been placed at the site
Julia, a member of the Northern Arapaho and Oglala Lakota community, will be buried on her family’s plot in South Dakota. Source: Sameria Black Crow/GoFundMe
“Our family is heartbroken by this loss,” Wilcox’s sister, Sameria Black Crow, wrote on the fundraiser.
“Right now, both of Julia’s parents are emotionally devastated, and our family is scrambling to raise the money needed to lay baby Julia to rest.”
She added: “Thank you for helping us honor Julia and bring her home to be laid to rest with her family.”
