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Baby died in fall through ninth floor window with faulty handle his mum had urged council to fix, it’s claimed

A baby boy died after falling through a ninth floor window with a faulty handle his ”brilliant” mother had urged the council to fix for two months, according to a neighbour.

The “very nice” 18-month-old – named locally as ‘Ali’ – plummeted from his family home on to the top of a canopy at the 19-floor new build council block in Tottenham, north London.

Emergency services, including an air ambulance, were called to the scene just before 10am on Halloween.

The boy, whose parents are said to be Kurdish, was pronounced dead in hospital about 11.30am yesterday.

Shocked neighbour Meral Dervish, 51, said 27-year-old mum of two Duygu called her in tears yesterday.

She said: “He opened a window, he fell down. The window, it was faulty.

“For nearly two months she was calling the council just to come to fix it.

“The handle was not secure. They were coming to fix it, but then this happened.

“She was crying, she was shocked yesterday. She was complaining about this.”

Meral added: “He was a very nice boy.

“The mum was looking after the kids brilliantly, she was caring for her children.”

She said the mum had complained about her flat windows as well and added: “I’ve had the same problem with the windows, and even the glass is broken.”

Ali lived with his five year old sister plus their mother and father, Gukhan, who had been at the flat for around four years.

Dona Sahan, a carer who works in the block, said: “He’s a nice, nice boy.

“It was just a window, I don’t know what happened.

“He fell from the ninth floor.“

A 27-year-old man said he saw a man he believed to be Ali’s grandfather crying at the scene.

Zina Etheridge, Haringey Council’s cief executive, said: “We are aware of a tragic incident of a young child falling from height in Tottenham, and our deepest sympathies are with the family at this time.

“The police are currently investigating and it would be inappropriate for us to comment further until more is known.”

A Met Police spokesman said: “Officers, the London Ambulance Service, London’s Air Ambulance and the London Fire Brigade attended and found the baby boy in a critical condition.

“The child, believed to be aged 18 months, was taken to a north London hospital where he was pronounced dead at 11.39am.

“Formal identification and a post-mortem examination will take place in due course.”

He said that no arrests have been made and officers are continuing to investigate.

Joe Mellor

Head of Content

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