An 11-year-old girl was seriously injured after a McDonald's restaurant employee allegedly fired a gun during an altercation in the establishment's parking lot in Hallandale Beach, Florida.

The minor, identified as Dora Belén Rivera, remained inside a truck with her father and her two brothers, ages 2 and 5, while her mother entered the restaurant to pick up a food order when the incident occurred on June 27.

The family was not the target of the shooting

According to authorities, the family was caught in the middle of a confrontation involving employee Ralph N-Kosi Blue III, 18.

According to the investigation, the young man was on his way to start his work shift when another person ran towards him in the parking lot. At that moment, he allegedly pulled out a gun and fired, hitting the vehicle where the family was.

The girl was shot in the head, while her father, Oscar Román Mirón, suffered a gunshot wound to the hip. The other two minors were unharmed.

The bullet remains lodged in the minor's head

Rivera remains hospitalized after undergoing emergency surgery.

According to a fundraising campaign created to help the family with medical expenses, doctors decided not to remove the projectile because doing so posed a greater risk to the patient.

The initiative indicates that the minor faces a long recovery process and that her siblings also receive support due to the emotional impact that the attack left on them.

For his part, the father was discharged after receiving medical attention.

Surveillance videos are part of the investigation

An arrest report, cited by NBC Miami, indicates that two days before the shooting several people came to the restaurant looking for Blue, who allegedly hid in the back of the establishment.

Security cameras captured the moment when another young man ran towards the employee and took refuge on the other side of the vehicle where the family was.

The images show that Blue quickly raised the gun and fired the shots, one of which went through the truck and wounded the girl and her father.

The employee was fired and faces several charges

Blue was charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill.

In a statement, the owner of the Hallandale Beach McDonald's restaurant, Brad Ashlin, confirmed that the young man no longer works for the company.

"We are devastated by the shooting that occurred outside our restaurant. Our thoughts are with the father and girl who were injured, as well as their entire family during this difficult time," he said.

The authorities are keeping the investigation open to fully clarify what happened and determine the circumstances of the confrontation that led to the shooting.