Twins Found Dead in N.Y.C. Apartment Were Foaming at the Mouth After Apparent 'Medical Tragedy'

The twins were both sick in the days prior to their deaths and kept home from school as a result, police said

Police say the 5-year-old twins who were found dead inside a New York City apartment on Monday appeared to have died after a “medical tragedy.”

The twins, who have not been publicly identified, were both very sick in the days prior to their deaths, and kept home from school as a result, according to ABC affiliate WABC-TV and CW affiliate WPIX.

The boy had been home from school since Nov. 30 after vomiting and experiencing cold symptoms, Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said on Tuesday, according to the New York Daily News. His sister had also been vomiting and had symptoms of an ear infection, per the official.

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Around 3 a.m. Monday morning, the mother reportedly found her children vomiting in bed, according to an NYPD news release, previously obtained by PEOPLE.

The mother saw her children alive around 5 a.m., but called for help around 11 a.m. after finding them in medical distress, according to the Daily News and CBS affiliate WCBS-TV. Police said the kids were found in bed, foaming from the nose and mouth, according to NBC New York and the New York Post.

She performed CPR until crews arrived at the scene, where the children were pronounced dead, the outlet reported.

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At a news conference on Tuesday, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said the situation “appears to be a medical tragedy,” although autopsy reports are pending, the Daily News reported.

The mother was transported to a local hospital for emotional distress, per the reports. The father, who was at work at the time, has been cooperating with authorities.

Neither child appeared to have physical signs of trauma, and drugs were not found at the home, police said. Carbon monoxide poisoning does not appear to be a factor either.

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Police have said that the family involved is seemingly “quiet” and “loving."

“All reports were that mom was well-engaged with everything to do with the children,” Kenny said at the news conference, per the Daily News. “She was an active participant with their medical care [and] active participant in their schooling.”

An investigation is ongoing.

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