NYC day care previously investigated for abuse says employee accidentally put cleaning solution in water pitcher served to kids

Parents have been forced to find new child care after some troubling stories at a Manhattan day care center.

CBS News New York Investigates first reported on child abuse allegations at the Bright Horizons at Columbus Circle day care center over the summer. Now, investigative reporter Tim McNicholas has learned an employee put a cleaning solution containing bleach in a classroom water pitcher.

The company says it was a mistake, but parents are still livid.

Bright Horizons at Columbus Circle goes dark

When CBS News New York visited the day care center recently, many of the lights were off and no one answered a locked door. Some parents say Bright Horizons called them earlier this month to tell them they’d have to switch to a different day care center, at least for now.

“I did mention on the phone that this was really uncool and we had no options at the time,” one mother said.

That mother, who asked not to be identified in order to protect her daughter’s identity, said Bright Horizons made no mention of any specific incident during the call.

“Her response is that they were dedicated to providing quality care for all our families and they weren’t able to provide that anymore,” the mother said.

The Oct. 27 water pitcher incident

CBS News New York has learned a staff member put a cleaning solution in a water pitcher that was then served to kids during snack time. An email from the Health Department confirms the city indefinitely shut down the center’s preschool program after the Oct. 27 incident, claiming it “exposed children to a toxic chemical.”

A Bright Horizons spokesperson says a teacher also drank the water on Oct. 27, noticed something was off, and the staff contacted poison control.

One father told CBS News New York he later brought his daughter in for medical treatment, but a Bright Horizons spokesperson told CBS News New York in an email that no medical attention was necessary.

“A mistake was made and to portray it as more than that would be misleading,” the spokesperson wrote. “There really is no story here.”

The mother said she’s thankful her child was not there that day.

“Had it not been for you, I would’ve never known. Like, this was not communicated to us at all in any way, and it’s just really bad practice,” she said.

Bright Horizons would not agree to an interview for this story, but it did say, in part, “The safety and well-being of the children in our care is our highest priority,” adding, “Unfortunately, the staff member had mistakenly filled the pitcher from a dispenser which contained a diluted cleaning solution — prepared daily for sanitizing toys. This solution consists of two gallons of water mixed with a small amount of bleach.”

“I feel like they should’ve been 100% on their best behavior. It’s just hard to believe this kind of mistake happened,” a mother said, “especially after the first incident.”  

Child abuse charges over the summer

The incident that mother was referring to was child abuse charges filed in July against three Bright Horizons employees who were fired as a result of the alleged abuse.

Manhattan prosecutors allege the employees covered a child’s mouth with tape, dragged a girl by her hair, hit kids with metal water bottles, and, early this year, sprayed a child in the face with a bottle of “soap mixed with water and bleach mixed with water.”

The former employees have pleaded not guilty in those ongoing cases and Bright Horizons previously told CBS News New York the company cooperated with investigators and is committed to supporting the families involved.

“It just doesn’t feel like they have child safety in their best interest”  

“To me, it’s shocking,” said Erin O’Connor, director of the NYU Early Childhood Education program. “One of the most basic structural indicators is that you have things set up in a way that there’s no way a toxic material would be near a water supply for children. It gives me pause about how much was done in response to the first incident.”

“It just doesn’t feel like they have child safety in their best interest. To me, it sounds like they care more about their appearance, like how they come off in hiding their mistakes,” the mother added.

The Health Department only ordered the preschool program shut down, but Bright Horizons, which maintains it has been open and honest with families, says it relocated classrooms of all ages for the time being. The mother who spoke with CBS News New York, for example, said her child was in the infant program at the center. She said she declined the offer to have her child relocated to a different Bright Horizons location and instead found a different childcare provider. 

The city says the center will have to appear at an administrative hearing to address whether the preschool should permanently close. The Health Department says the center will also have to update its safety protocols.

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