A 33-year-old mother and wife was killed in a hit-and-run crash over the weekend after a family outing at the beach in Playa del Rey and police need help finding the driver who fled the scene.
Wendy Galdamez, of Downey, was struck by an SUV about 11 p.m. Saturday night while she crossed Vista Del Mar in Playa del Rey.
Galdamez had spent the day with her husband and two children at the beach, and was cradling her 3-year-old son when she was hit by a dark-colored Toyota 4-Runner.
Her family told KTLA they are shocked and heartbroken.
“It’s shocking. I can’t believe it still. We’re still in complete shock that this happened,” Jennifer Vera, Galdamez’s cousin, said. “My cousin, she was loving, nurturing, she was all about her family, she was so giving.”
Galdamez was pronounced dead at the scene, the Los Angeles Police Department reported.
Her son was taken to a local hospital and was expected to be OK.
Galdamez’s family said the final act of protecting her child from danger is a bittersweet reminder of the type of mother she was.
“I think she’s a hero,” Vera said. “I think she did what every mother would do and I think that speaks a lot of who she was as a mother.”
The family is pleading for justice and has since started a GoFundMe page to help her loved ones.
LAPD is still looking for the driver that fled the deadly scene.
“Whoever saw anything, if anyone has any info on this person, the car, anything please just give whatever you know to the police … I just hope justice is served,” Vera said.