One-year-old child dies after falling from first floor property in Spain's Basque Country
The infant was rushed to hospital after the incident but doctors could only certify the child's death
Nuria Nuño
Vitoria
Wednesday, 24 September 2025, 15:28
A one-year-old child died on Saturday, 20 September, after falling from the first floor of a property in Vitoria - a city in Spain's Basque Country. The incident happened on Calle Aguirreland, in the Lakua-Arriaga neighbourhood, shortly before 6pm.
Emergency services were immediately mobilised to the scene. The child was rushed to Txagorritxu hospital, but the doctors could only certify the infant's death. It is not known whether the child died during the transfer or shortly after being admitted to hospital.
The Local Police were the first to intervene at the scene, but the Basque Country's regional force - the Ertzaintza - is currently in charge of the investigation. In principle, there is "no evidence of criminality", which rules out the responsibility of third parties. Consequently, the main hypothesis is that it was a fatal "accident".
Other cases that have shaken Vitoria
Such tragic events are not frequent in Vitoria, but they are not rare either. Newspaper archives show several not so distant precedents. This tragic event has brought back to mind a number of similar cases. In March 2024, a baby fell from the fifth floor of a block of flats on Avenida 8 de Marzo. Due to the extent of his injuries, a medicalised ambulance rushed him to HUA Txagorritxu, where he was admitted in a "critical" condition. He was then taken to the paediatric ICU at Cruces. Despite the fall, the little boy survived.
One of the cruelest incidents in Vitoria's living memory is the murder of 17-month-old Alicia, who was thrown from a first floor on Calle Libertad. The murder was executed by the mother's boyfriend - Daniel Montaño - on 25 January 2016. The criminal, who also tried to kill his partner, is in prison.
In the summer of 2015, a two-and-a-half-year-old boy died after falling from a sixth floor in the Zaramaga neighbourhood. The little boy fell after climbing up a cupboard on the balcony. On 19 November 2013, another case shocked the city. A four-year-old girl fell from an eighth-floor flat in Portal de Foronda. In July 2008, one-and-a-half-year-old Eric died from a similar fall on Calle Valentín de Foronda. On 8 October 2001, a 12-year-old boy lost his life after falling from his home in Plaza Pepe Ubis.
