MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - The search is on for a driver who was involved in a hit-and-run that sent two teenagers to the hospital. Now, those two teens are out of the hospital and are speaking out about what happened.
Miami Beach Police on Friday responded to the scene at the intersection of Sheridan Avenue and Pine Tree Drive after receiving reports of a hit-and-run incident.
“I’m going to be OK, and nothing’s going to happen,” said Calvin Thomas.
Those were the words Thomas told his mother right before he was tossed in the air after a vehicle hit him. He had to undergo three surgeries on his face.
“They thought I had died for a couple of moments ’cause I really thought it wasn’t real either,” he said. “I thought I passed out or I was dreaming or I died but it was definitely pretty scary.”
Thomas’ mother, Sonia Thomas, said she received a call from officers to rush to the hospital.
“He caught me down when I saw him,” Sonia said.
The last time she saw her son, he was on his way out to a teen club with his friend Mili Retamoza.
According to police, the two teens were crossing the intersection when the vehicle, a newer model white Nissan Rogue, was traveling northbound on Pine Tree and struck the victims.
The subject then fled the scene going northbound on Sheridan Avenue.
The teens were transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center with non-life-threatening injuries.
“She, apparently she got thrown 8 feet in the air because she got hit by the front of the car and kind of flipped over the car, and she didn’t break any bones either,” Thomas said. “I flew 3 feet in the air and went face-first into the concrete.”
The teens said they looked both ways before crossing the street, but now, Thomas is cut up and has bruises around his face and a gash on his inner thigh. Retamoza has road rash and bruises all over her body.
“My mom gave me some numbing medicine but I’m doing pretty good other than the pain in my body,” she said.
Both of the teens’ friends were following them and said they saw the driver speeding down Pine Tree Drive.
“She came speeding out of nowhere, hit both of them, she rolled over the hood, I didn’t really get to see what happened to him, and then I just saw both of them fly to the side into the middle of the road,” said Nicolette Kusich, a witness.
While the event was traumatic, the mothers of the teens are banding together to seek justice.
“We need to live in a world where it’s not all trauma and we need to just come, and if she could come forward and everybody can get the help and assistance they need,” said Clarissa Retamoza, Mili’s mother.
Calvin’s mother started a GoFundMe for both of the teens to assist with their medical expenses. If you’d like to donate, click here.
If you have any information on this crime, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a reward of up to $5,000.
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