MARYSVILLE — Investigators on Thursday were trying to determine what led to the death of a 15-month-old boy who reportedly fell down the stairs hours earlier.
The boyfriend of the boy’s mother was watching the toddler Wednesday night and told police the child tumbled about 9 p.m. Police believe the boy fell from the second floor down a flight of stairs in a two-level apartment in the 7400 block of 47th Avenue NE, Marysville police Cmdr. Robb Lamoureux said.
The child was crying after the fall.
The couple decided not to take the boy to the hospital, Lamoureux said.
“It’s at parents’ discretion to seek medical help,” he said.
The mother told police the boy was breathing when she checked on him about 3 a.m. The couple went to sleep. When they woke up around noon, the child wasn’t breathing.
They called 911. The child was dead when paramedics arrived. Police were summoned.
“Obviously we’re going to investigate this type of situation,” Lamoureux said.
The Snohomish County medical examiner was expected to perform an autopsy. The child’s name wasn’t released Thursday evening.
The mother and her boyfriend were interviewed by detectives. No arrests were made.
On Thursday, children circled on their bikes around the parking lot of the apartment complex, trying to peek behind the yellow police tape guarding the entrance to the apartment where the boy died.
Neighbor Benji Chester, 30, came out of his apartment when he saw TV trucks. He said his heart sank when he found out what’s going on; he is a father of three children.
The man said he’ll keep his little ones away from stairs. “This is definitely an eye opener,” he said.
Falls are one of the leading causes of injury and death for young children in Snohomish County, said Kristen Thorstenson, a spokeswoman for Snohomish County Safe Kids.
“Things that are minor for an adult could be life-threatening for a small child,” she said. A small child’s skull doesn’t offer the same protection as that of an adult.
“You just never know with young children how their body is going to respond to an injury,” Thorstenson said. “We would always encourage people to err on the side of caution.”
Don’t hesitate to call 911 if you think your child may be hurt, Thorstenson said. Medics would rather get the call that turns out to be nothing than have something tragic happen.
Katya Yefimova: 425-339-3452, kyefimova@heraldnet.com.
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