New York City school shut down when toddler dies after eating grilled cheese

Elijah Silvera died on Nov. 3 after he reportedly went into anaphylactic shock from eating a grilled cheese at a school in Harlem. (GoFundMe)

A school in New York City on Wednesday shut down after a 3-year-old boy, severely allergic to dairy, died after eating a grilled cheese sandwich, reports said.

Elijah Silvera died on Nov. 3 after he went into anaphylactic shock from eating a grilled cheese at the Seventh Avenue Center for Family Services in Harlem, The Daily News reported. He was rushed to the Harlem Hospital pediatric emergency room, where he died.

Silvera was served the sandwich “despite them [the school] knowing and having documented that he has a severe allergy to dairy,” according to a GoFundMe page. The New York City Health Department released a statement late Wednesday that the school will remain closed as the investigation continues, Fox 8 reported.

"There is nothing more important than the safety of our children and we are deeply saddened by this tragedy. We will get to the bottom of what happened here. In the meantime, we’re closing the Center for Family Services and continuing to aggressively investigate what happened and whether the facility could have done something differently to prevent this tragedy," the statement read.

Silvera’s GoFundMe page has raised nearly $18,500 and will go toward an independent autopsy report.