HOLLYWOOD, FLA. (WSVN) - A mother and daughter are recovering in the hospital after, police said, they were struck on the Fourth of July by a driver who fled the scene.
According to Steven Hernandez, the victims’ husband and father, the family was in Hollywood visiting relatives, Wednesday night.
“We were on scooters at the family’s house. My nephew and my daughter wanted to go around the block for a ride on the scooters,” he said.
Hernandez said he and his nephew followed his wife Jasmine and their 12-year-old daughter when a car came out of nowhere at South 26th Avenue and Plunkett Street.
“My wife pulled off from a stop sign. This car was just flying down the street, and they both get hit,” he said.
The force of the impact caused the victims to fly off of the scooter in different directions.
“The scooter goes in pieces,” said Hernandez. “My wife is flung forward, my daughter was just flung in the air.”
Area resident Cathleen Dean said she heard the crash. “It was the Fourth of July. I heard a loud bang,” she said, “and it sounded like a gunshot to me.”
The driver, Hernandez said, did not stop.
“It just happened so fast, and my first instinct was to help my family,” he said.
“I heard this wail, this gut-wrenching wail that I can’t get out of my head,” said Dean.
“I was screaming for someone to call the ambulance,” said Hernandez. “I didn’t want to leave them alone.”
Paramedics took mother and daughter to Memorial Regional Hospital, where Jasmine is listed in critical condition. Her daughter suffered a broken femur and has undergone various operations.
Photographs of the victims show them lying in their hospital beds. Her left arm in a cast, the younger victim could lose the use of her fingers. Her mother could lose her sight in one eye.
Hollywood Police said a 2017 Honda Accord hybrid was found abandoned the next day. It had been stolen.
“It ran through them like they weren’t human,” said Hernandez.
“It’s so unconscionable to think that you could smash into people like that and then just take off,” said Dean.
As police continue to search for the driver, Hernandez said he is struggling to come to terms with the aftermath of the violent crash.
“My heart is broken because this happened,” he said. “I don’t know how to deal with this.”
Hernandez created a GoFundMe page to help his wife and daughter with medical expenses. If you would like to make a donation, click here.
If you have any information on this hit-and-run, call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $3,000 reward.
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