A driver struck and killed a woman in North Philadelphia then left the scene of the deadly wreck after stopping briefly, police said.
Responding police officers and medics found a woman in her 30s in the northbound lanes of North Broad Street, near Somerset Street, around 3:30 a.m. Thursday, Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said.
She had severe trauma to her head, Small said. Medics pronounced her dead at the scene.
"This is a fatal hit-and-run auto accident," Small said. "She was hit by such force that she was launched, knocked out of one of her sneakers."
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A witness told investigators that a white sedan -- possibly a Toyota -- was going northbound on Broad Street, just past Lehigh Avenue, when the car struck the woman as she crossed the street.
"After striking the female, the white vehicle stopped and pulled over," Small said. "But after a few seconds then pulled off and fled from the scene northbound on Broad Street."
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Police found a large piece of plastic near the woman's body that investigators believe is part of the undercarriage of the striking car.
Crash investigators hoped that surveillance video from the area would help them get a better description of the car.
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