mascan42
03-17-2004, 08:56 PM
Mom & tot die in tub accident
By JOSE MARTINEZ and GREG GITTRICH
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS
A 3-year-old boy drowned in a bathtub, probably after his mother suffered a fatal heart attack in their Queens home and fell on top of him, law enforcement sources said yesterday.
The decomposing bodies - identified by a relative as Rosilyn Hines, 50, and her son, Robbie - were discovered yesterday morning after neighbors who had not seen them for several days called cops.
"How could little Robbie die?" grieved Hines' 34-year-old son, Alfred, at his mother's home on Seagirt Ave. in the Rockaways.
The tragic scene was so overwhelming that cops who found the bodies walked out of the basement apartment to regain their composure, neighbors said.
"They were really messed up," said Jeffrey Taylor, 48, a friend of Hines who lives in the same complex, the Seacrest Gardens by the Sea. "All they were saying was, 'This is not good. This is not good.' "
Taylor said he and others grew suspicious because a bag of groceries dropped off outside Hines' door by a friend had sat in the hallway for days.
Those fears worsened yesterday when the parents of children who Hines baby-sat could not contact the woman, who they knew as extremely trustworthy.
"No man, no alcohol, no music, no noise," Taylor said of Hines. "Just baby-sitting and church."
Police were investigating what led to the deaths, but law enforcement sources said evidence pointed to a bizarre double accident.
"What appears to have happened is she was giving the child a bath and was stricken by a heart attack," a source said. "She fell onto the child or next to the tub and the child drowned."
An FDNY spokesman said EMTs were called to the apartment around 11 a.m. and gave a similar account. The medical examiner will determine the official causes of death, police said.
Alfred Hines said his mother lived a turbulent life. Another of her sons died when he was 18 and her 25-year-old daughter is autistic, according to Alfred, who said he is homeless.
Rosilyn Hines, who had been divorced twice, also suffered from heart problems. But she rose above her troubles to care for several foster children, including Robbie, who she adopted, relatives and neighbors said.
Valjon Furr, a family friend, said the day Rosilyn adopted her son was "one of the bright, high and happy moments" of her life.
"She loved that baby to bits," said Furr, trying to find comfort in Rosilyn's religious devotion. "She trusted God to be there for her. Roz would be the first to tell you this was God's will."
By JOSE MARTINEZ and GREG GITTRICH
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS
A 3-year-old boy drowned in a bathtub, probably after his mother suffered a fatal heart attack in their Queens home and fell on top of him, law enforcement sources said yesterday.
The decomposing bodies - identified by a relative as Rosilyn Hines, 50, and her son, Robbie - were discovered yesterday morning after neighbors who had not seen them for several days called cops.
"How could little Robbie die?" grieved Hines' 34-year-old son, Alfred, at his mother's home on Seagirt Ave. in the Rockaways.
The tragic scene was so overwhelming that cops who found the bodies walked out of the basement apartment to regain their composure, neighbors said.
"They were really messed up," said Jeffrey Taylor, 48, a friend of Hines who lives in the same complex, the Seacrest Gardens by the Sea. "All they were saying was, 'This is not good. This is not good.' "
Taylor said he and others grew suspicious because a bag of groceries dropped off outside Hines' door by a friend had sat in the hallway for days.
Those fears worsened yesterday when the parents of children who Hines baby-sat could not contact the woman, who they knew as extremely trustworthy.
"No man, no alcohol, no music, no noise," Taylor said of Hines. "Just baby-sitting and church."
Police were investigating what led to the deaths, but law enforcement sources said evidence pointed to a bizarre double accident.
"What appears to have happened is she was giving the child a bath and was stricken by a heart attack," a source said. "She fell onto the child or next to the tub and the child drowned."
An FDNY spokesman said EMTs were called to the apartment around 11 a.m. and gave a similar account. The medical examiner will determine the official causes of death, police said.
Alfred Hines said his mother lived a turbulent life. Another of her sons died when he was 18 and her 25-year-old daughter is autistic, according to Alfred, who said he is homeless.
Rosilyn Hines, who had been divorced twice, also suffered from heart problems. But she rose above her troubles to care for several foster children, including Robbie, who she adopted, relatives and neighbors said.
Valjon Furr, a family friend, said the day Rosilyn adopted her son was "one of the bright, high and happy moments" of her life.
"She loved that baby to bits," said Furr, trying to find comfort in Rosilyn's religious devotion. "She trusted God to be there for her. Roz would be the first to tell you this was God's will."