The grief-stricken family of the adorable 1-year-old girl who drowned in a pool at a Bronx day care center while a worker was apparently cooking are demanding answers over the “unimaginable tragedy.”
Little River Edima Wilson was found unconscious in the above-ground pool at Anna’s Butterfly Garden Family Group on Story Avenue in Castle Hill just before 1 p.m. Friday, cops and sources said.
River Edima Wilson was found unconscious in the above-ground pool at Anna’s Butterfly Garden Family Group day care on Story Avenue in Castle Hill on Friday. https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-memory-of-river-a-familys-heartacheThe sweet girl apparently fell into the pool when the 47-year-old woman who was meant to be watching her was distracted as she also cooked for around 20 minutes, according to the sources.
Her parents, Ima and Ifiok Wilson, are accusing the day care of neglecting their baby — questioning how the tiny tot could have even been left unattended for such a long period in the first place.
The sweet girl apparently fell into the pool when the 47-year-old woman who was meant to be watching her was distracted. Obtained by the NY Post
“What happened to my sweet baby?” her sobbing mom told News 12 on Monday.
“We thought she was safe,” River’s dad added.
The family also claims that the day care center has been ignoring them and their requests for answers.
“They trusted [the day care] to protect and care for their child but they catastrophically failed them by allowing River to drown,” a family statement stated of the “unimaginable tragedy.”
Memorial of flowers, candles, and stuffed animals outside a daycare. Kyle Mazza/NurPhoto/Shutterstock“The day care has compounded the pain of River’s passing by completely ignoring the family’s efforts to contact them. River’s family deserves to know what happened to their baby girl but the day care has refused to provide any information or communicate with the family.”
Family members blasted the “completely implausible” suggestion from the owner that the tot may have climbed the locked gate.
“If the gate was locked she could not open it. She was good but not that good,” the child’s grandfather, who didn’t want to be named, told The Post Tuesday.
“I just want to know exactly what happened.”
Her grief-stricken parents, Ima and Ifiok Wilson, are accusing the day care of neglecting their baby. https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-memory-of-river-a-familys-heartache
The family also claims that the day care center has been ignoring them and their requests for answers. Brigitte Stelzer“River would have survived if she was in the water for only 2-3 minutes because she was trained for that she was in swimming lessons,” he said.
The child was already unconscious and unresponsive when officers arrived following the initial 911 call, cops said.
A former police officer was visiting one of the infant’s neighbors when he heard the commotion unfold and rushed over to help.
“There was screaming, yelling, howling,” he told NBC4. “We went to the backyard area and that’s where we saw the baby on the platform and started doing CPR.”
The former cop described cutting off the girl’s dress and painstakingly trying CPR for several minutes.
“I was searching for a pulse. I couldn’t find one,” he said.
The girl was eventually rushed to Montefiore Einstein Hospital, where she was pronounced dead, cops said.
The girl was found unconscious in the pool at Anna’s Butterfly Garden Family Group day care in Castle Hill. Kyle Mazza/NurPhoto/ShutterstockThe medical examiner will determine the official cause of death.
No arrests have been made, but a probe into the girl’s tragic demise is still underway, police said.
Meanwhile, a memorial located outside the day care continued to grow with mourners leaving flowers, tiny white shoes and a Bible.
“She was good. She was an angel. Came to his world to just bless us,” her mom told News 12.
