BROOKLYN — A 1-year-old boy died after his father gave him a homemade cough remedy then left him alone in a steam-filled bathroom in their Kensington home on Thursday, sources said.
Mordechai Halpern had a coughing fit early Thursday morning that was so bad that it awoke his father in their East Second Street home, near Ditmas Avenue, sources said.
The dad, whose name and age weren't immediately released, fixed Mordechai a drink of water, lemon and sugar, but that still didn't stop the boy's cough, sources said.
The dad then brought the boy in a stroller into the bathroom and let the faucets run with hot water to create a kind of steam room, sources said.
The dad set his alarm for an hour and left the boy alone in the room, returning later to find the boy unconscious and unresponsive, sources said.
Police were called about 5:15 a.m. and the boy was brought to Maimonides Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, NYPD officials said.
The Medical Examiner will determine his cause of death, officials said.
The boy was buried Thursday night, according to a lawyer for the family.
Investigators are questioning Mordechai's parents, but there were no immediate arrests, police said.
The parents were devastated by their son's sudden death, according to their lawyer, Susan Necheles.
"It is a tragedy. Right now, the family is in mourning," Necheles said.
"We're trying to get the facts," she added.
Investigators with Administration for Children's Services are looking into the Mordechai's death, a spokesman said.
He said privacy laws preclude the agency from disclosing whether or not it has any past interactions with the family.
