Image copyright CBS

A suspect is in custody after five people, including three infants, were stabbed overnight at a nursery in the New York City borough of Queens.

Police were called to a home, which investigators say was operating as a nursery, at around 03:45 local time (07:45 GMT) on Friday morning.

Nine children were in the house at the time. The three injured children range in age from three days to 20 days old.

The suspect was found unconscious in the basement with a wound on her wrist.

The 52-year-old suspect, who has not been named by police, was revived after responding New York Police Department (NYPD) applied a tourniquet on her arm.

Investigators believe her injuries to be self-inflicted.

NYPD Assistant Chief Juanita Holmes said two knives were found at the scene.

A father was stabbed in the leg and a female employee suffered several stab wounds to the torso.

All of those injured were taken to hospital in "critical but stable condition", police said, and are expected to survive.

According to investigators, the attacker is believed to be an employee at the nursery.

Chief Holmes said the home was not known to police, apart from one call in 2011 of "children screaming".

It is unclear if the nursery was a legal child care facility, according to CBS New York.

Neighbours said they called police on Friday after hearing screams coming from the building in the Flushing neighbourhood of Queens.

"I got up, went and got dressed, and came out to see which house is it, because obviously I'm concerned, this is my neighbourhood," one neighbour told CBS.

"I didn't even know there was a daycare around here," the man added.

According to ABC News, a butcher's knife and a meat cleaver were recovered from the scene.

The networks added that all of the children were with their parents inside the Mei Xin Care Inc building, which police described as a "short-term residential facility".