Deputies responded just before noon to a 911 call for a pedestrian hit at the 4000 block of Mena Drive.
The investigation showed a white Dodge Avenger crossed left of the center line while navigating a curve southbound on Pummill Road. The car hit the children, who were in a plastic toy car being pulled with a string by their mother on the shoulder of the road.
The children and their mother were rushed to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center. The North Carolina State Highway Patrol said 2-year-old Cecilia Ballester Martinez died there from her injuries.
State troopers said 4-year-old Alexander Ballester Martinez was later flown to UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill in critical condition. The mother, Esperanaza Ballester, 33, of Fayetteville, was being treated at Cape Fear Valley.
The impact forced the toy car under the Dodge, the Highway Patrol said. The driver then veered to the right, struck a fence post, and came to a stop.
The driver of the car, Abinijah Lavon Lewis, 18, of Fayetteville, was also injured and taken for treatment. Charges are pending.
The sheriff's office contacted the Highway Patrol for assistance, and the state agency will take the primary role in the investigation.
Anyone with further information regarding this crash is asked to please call the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office at (910) 323-1500 or the Highway Patrol.
To remain anonymous, contact Crimestoppers at (910) 483-TIPS (8477). Crimestoppers information can also be submitted electronically.
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