A woman got out of a car, fell to the ground and was promptly struck by a hit-and-run driver in North Philadelphia early Thursday morning and police said the striking driver might have not even realized they hit the woman.
Police officers and paramedics rushed to North Front Street, near Hunting Park Avenue, just after 3:40 a.m. on Aug. 15, 2024, to 24-year-old Tahtiana Diggs with injuries to her chest and torso laying on the street, Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said.
Medics began administering CPR and then rushed Diggs to the hospital where she died a short time later, Small said.
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Two sisters who were with Diggs said that she was in a car going northbound on Front Street when the car pulled over adjacent from a cemetery and the 24-year-old hopped out of the car and fell to the ground, police said.
As she fell, a passing vehicle struck Diggs, investigators said.
"After striking the female the striking vehicle... did not stop, but fled the scene," Small said.
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Initially, police said a light gray pickup truck had hit Diggs, but at a Thursday afternoon news conference, Police Capt. Mark Overwise said that surveillance cameras captured both the pickup truck and a small SUV passing the scene.
One or both of those drivers hit Diggs, Overwise said. However, neither driver might have realized it. Both of the drivers even later stopped at a nearby red light.
No car parts or glass were left at the scene that could led to the striking vehicle, Overwise said.
"It's possible given the circumstances... that the driver was unaware that they struck a person," Overwise said.
Overwise pleaded with anyone who was driving along Front Street at the time of the crash to call accident investigators at 215-685-3180 and describe what they experienced.
On Friday, police said that the driver of a gray Kia headed that plea and came forward.
"Upon hearing that a person was struck and killed at the location, the driver of the gray KIA went to a Philadelphia Police District and spoke to police," police said. "The driver is cooperating with investigators."
No charges were immediately filed and the search for the pickup driver continued, police said.
"Police believe the driver may have witnessed the crashed," police said.
It was unclear what led to Diggs falling onto the road and why she got out of the car, Overwise said.
Overwise said that Front Street and intersecting Hunting Park are roads where speeding sometimes happens due to how wide the roads are.
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