3-year-old boy's fatal fall raises concerns for parents about window safety

The fatal fall of a three-year-old boy from an eighth floor window at Independence Towers Apartments sent shock waves through the building on Monday.

“It’s not safe, I just feel like this building is not safe for children at all,” said Shawnell Ward, who lives on the eighth floor.

Since the child's death, there is growing concern around window safety among tenants.

John Batten

Rosanna Brown, who moved in with her family in March, said she was nervous about living on an upper level for the first time and demanded to have window screens put in.

Brown and her husband also installed window locks on their bedroom windows as an extra precaution.

“We still tell her, 'Get away from the window. You can fall out,'" said Brown. “The windows aren’t… I mean that’s pretty low, pretty low. And I mean, a seven-year-old could, she’s been tempted to throw stuff out the window before.”

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, nine children die each year after falling from a window.

Children’s Mercy Hospital says the younger the child, the higher the risk, because of their larger head size in proportion to the rest of their body.

Parents should consider these tips from experts:

• Move furniture away from windows
• Install window guards to prevent children from falling out
• Install window stops to prevent windows from opening more than four inches

“Anything like this can happen to anyone, it doesn’t matter where you’re from, the color of your skin or anything else,” said Battalion Chief Eric Michel of the Independence Fire Department.
As a mother, Brown grieves with the family of the boy who died. She hopes this incident will prompt the owners to install window screens in every unit.

“You guys spent money on portable AC's, you can spend a dollar on window to get those screens in,” said Brown.