San Diego

The 20-month-old twins who fell Sunday from a second-story kitchen window in East San Diego were listed in good condition Monday at Children’s Hospital.

Matthew and Chantel Therrien were taken to Sharp Memorial Hospital and later transferred to Children’s Hospital after they toppled out of the kitchen window of their 54th Street apartment while their mother was sleeping, said Lt. William Taylor of the Child Abuse Unit of the San Diego Police Department.

“Chantel was more seriously injured when the accident occurred. She fractured her skull and had severe bruising,” Taylor said. “We think her brother fell on top of her, lessening the severity of his fall.”

According to police, Chantel apparently landed on a small cushion that appeared to have been there for some time.

The toddlers apparently climbed onto a chair beside the crank-type window, which had no screen, and pushed it open. They fell 15 feet to the ground, Taylor said.

The children’s mother, Brenda, was asleep at the time and their father, Daniel, was away from home, police said.

“A 5-year-old boy nearby said he heard a thump and then saw the children on the ground,” Taylor said. “The boy started yelling for help and a neighbor in the apartment building came out to assist him. At that time, the toddlers’ mother was coming down the stairs to see what was happening.”

“Right now, we don’t think it’s anything more than an accident,” Taylor said. “We don’t feel that there is any negligence on the parents’ part.”