Family of Hallandale Beach girl who died in hot car blames babysitter’s decision
The 2-year-old girl who died Sunday after being left in a hot car in Hallandale Beach was in the vehicle for more than three hours before anyone noticed, her family said.
Brittany Nicole Láinez Lopez was supposed to be in the care of a paid babysitter, but that woman instead had her father pick up the child from the girl’s home, and he left her in the 2012 Honda Odyssey that he was driving from around 9 a.m. until almost 1 p.m., Brittany’s mother, Ovilia Cristina Lopez Ramirez, told the Miami Herald on Thursday.
The car was parked outside a home in the 900 block of Northwest Seventh Avenue, police said. It’s not clear if that’s where the man lives.
The babysitter’s father, Lopez Ramirez said, has mental-health issues, including memory loss. Lopez Ramirez, who was working at a restaurant that day, did not name the babysitter or her father, nor have police.
Friends set up a GoFundMe account to raise money to pay for Brittany’s funeral expenses and asked for a thorough investigation into her death.
“Justice has to be served for this baby, Cristina is a very hardworking and humble person, and due to someone else’s carelessness, she lost her only babygirl,” the statement reads.
Police said in a statement Thursday that Brittany was driven from the home on Northwest Seventh Avenue to a hospital “by the parties involved,” where medical staff declared her dead.
According to emergency radio dispatch communications from that day, the hospital was Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood, and police were urgently trying to find the people who transported Brittany.
Police said in their statement that officers arrived at the hospital at 1:35 p.m. and notified Lopez Ramirez “as soon as the necessary steps were completed.” According to the GoFundMe statement, police arrived at her place of work to tell her at 2:45 p.m.
Detectives are waiting for the Broward Medical Examiner’s Office’s final report before going to the Broward State Attorney’s Office to determine “whether criminal charges are appropriate,” Hallandale police said.
“The Medical Examiner’s Office has since released the child’s remains to the family’s designated funeral home, allowing funeral arrangements and visitation to proceed,” the department said.
Hallandale Police Chief Michel Michel said in a statement that the tragedy is a reminder to always make sure to check if children are out of vehicles after parking.
“This tragedy has touched our entire community. While nothing can undo the pain this family is experiencing, our hearts remain with the child’s family,” Michel said. “We hope this child’s story inspires every caregiver to adopt one simple habit: always check the back seat before leaving your vehicle. Taking one extra moment could prevent another family from experiencing this unimaginable loss.”
Temperatures reached 90 degrees in Hallandale Beach on Sunday, with heat indexes reaching near 100 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. According to the nonprofit Kids and Car Safety, on the types of hot, sunny days frequently experienced in South Florida, parked vehicles trap heat, causing the interior to soar above 120 degrees.
At least 31 children died in hot cars in 2025, according to the National Safety Council and nine have died this year. On average, 37 children younger than 15 years old die of heatstroke yearly after being left in hot cars.
