11-month-old baby dies after being burned by steam from radiator in Brooklyn apartment
NEW YORK -- Police are investigating an 11-month-old boy's death after they said he was burned by steam from a radiator in an apartment in Brooklyn.
Officers responded to the building on East 14th Street in Midwood on Friday after getting a 911 call at 6 a.m. They found the baby unconscious in a room filled with steam from a radiator that may have had a broken pipe, police said.
The boy was pronounced dead at the hospital after suffering burns, according to police.
"One family. That child is part of our family. That's why I'm heartbroken," said neighbor Chayla Davis.
Detectives and New York City officials went to the building to figure out exactly what happened inside the family's first-floor apartment.
One neighbor told CBS New York the heat in the building runs way too hot sometimes, but another neighbor said he never noticed it.
"I see them every day, almost. I know that they have a newborn baby, it's horrible. It never gets too hot that much," said Tabriz Negmatov.
The Department of Buildings said there were no recent complaints or department-issued violations recorded at the property prior to Friday morning, but inspectors found a laundry room was constructed in the basement illegally.
Relatives of the baby left the building with bags not long after a partial vacate order was posted on the front door.
The building's landlord and super said the heating system appeared to be working properly in the other apartments.
Investigators said they're focused on the safety of the building's steam heat.
