Woman killed in hit-and-run crash in North Philly, the latest in string of incidents

A woman was killed in a hit-and-run crash in North Philadelphia Sunday night, the latest in a recent string of such incidents that have left several injured and others dead.

Police responded to a report of a fatal crash at the intersection of North 5th Street and West Indiana Avenue shortly after 7:30 p.m.

Investigators learned a person driving a silver Hyundai Sonata northbound on North 5th Street struck a 42-year-old pedestrian as the driver made a left turn onto West Indiana Avenue, police said. The woman, whom police did not identify, was taken to Temple University Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 8:05 p.m.

The passengers in the Sonata fled the scene on foot, police said. No arrests have been made, and police continue to investigate.

The fatal incident came the day after three nurses tending to a shooting victim outside Penn Presbyterian Hospital were seriously injured in another hit-and-run crash.

Police said a driver in a silver Jeep Cherokee arrived at Penn Presbyterian’s ambulance bay area around 4:20 a.m. Saturday to drop off a 28-year-old man with multiple gunshot wounds. As the nurses gathered to provide first aid to the shooting victim, the driver struck them before fleeing the scene, police said.

A 36-year-old nurse suffered facial injuries and internal bleeding and was in critical condition, police said. A 37-year-old nurse suffered injuries to his legs, and a 51-year-old nurse suffered injuries to his head and back. They are in stable condition, police said.

The shooting victim — who police said was wounded on the 1300 block of Belmont Avenue — may have suffered an additional head injury as the driver fled the scene, police said.

A week ago, a 56-year-old man was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver as he walked along Broad Street in North Philadelphia, police said.

Just before 7:30 p.m. Oct. 7, the man, whom police did not identify, was hit by a car on the 3900 block of North Broad Street, police said. He was taken to Albert Einstein Medical Center in critical condition and was pronounced dead within minutes, at 7:34 p.m.

Police later found what they believe to be the car that struck him, a 2013 Nissan Sentra, under a tarp in the area of 5200 North 11th Street, said Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore.

No arrests have been made, and police continue to investigate.

And last month, police said, a driver struck and killed 14-year-old Dawn Watson as she walked with her mother in West Philadelphia. Watson was headed home from a store with her mother and crossing the street on the 6500 block of Haverford Avenue around 9:38 p.m., police said, when she was struck by someone driving a dark-colored sedan at a high rate of speed.

The teen, who was just blocks from home at the time, was pronounced dead at the scene.

A few days after Watson was killed, a tip led authorities to the suspect’s car, a 2011 Mercedes-Benz E 350, on the 5800 block of Girard Avenue, covered by a tarp. Investigators identified the man they say killed the girl as Marvin Wicker.

Tips from the community led investigators to find Wicker hiding in a back room in a rooming house in Germantown on Oct. 10. He was charged with vehicular homicide and related crimes.

Anyone with information about the other incidents is urged to contact the police at 215-686-8477.