Three-year-old dies in apartment plunge after December rescue

ABU DHABI // A three-year-old girl has died after falling from a fifth-floor balcony, weeks after she was rescued after leaning from a window in the same Abu Dhabi apartment.

The child had been rescued in December after she was spotted leaning out of the kitchen window. A policeman who forced his way into the house in Airport Road discovered the parents were out at work and the child was alone.

The child fell around 6pm on Tuesday from a balcony off the living room, police said. She was in the apartment with her aunt, who was taking a nap when the accident happened.

Lt Col Faisal Al Shammari, director of the child protection centre at the Ministry of Interior, said leaving any child alone was putting its life at risk. He urged families not to allow children to sit by windows or on balconies without taking proper safety precautions.

The Center of the Ministry of Interior has previously recommended installing metal bars or locks on windows in high-rise apartments.

The police investigation into the girl's death is continuing.

Earlier reports said the accident happened yesterday and that she fell from a window.

molson@thenational.ae