The woman has been identified as 63-year-old Li Yu Zhang.
"The vehicle fled the scene, we don't have any vehicle description or operator description at this time. They are working very tirelessly to figure out what kind of vehicle this was," said Sgt. Paul Shavack, Delaware State Police.A passing driver discovered the body around 8:45 Friday morning.
The victim was lying on the side of the road on the 600 block of Marsh Road.
Police say it appears Zhang had been hit by a vehicle sometime overnight.
It is a dark stretch of road with a blind curve near where the victim was found.
"No sidewalk, it's a small shoulder with a grassy area that buts up against the residences that are in that area," said Sgt. Shavack.
Zhang had been well-known in the area. She was often seen walking along the roadways day and night carrying a stick with shopping bags tied to either end.
A couple of shopping bags with personal belongings were found at the scene of the accident.
Many assumed Zhang was homeless but police say she lived in North Wilmington and relatives were able to identify her.
Investigators recovered pieces of a vehicle at the scene and are now analyzing them hoping to identify a make and model.
Police are asking anyone who might've seen unexplained front end damage to a vehicle to give them a call.
They're also leaving the door open for the driver who may have been unaware that he or she hit something.
"If this person doesn't know they hit something, we would ask them to contact us," said Sgt. Shavack.
Delaware State Police also want to hear from anyone who might've seen anything at all unusual in that area overnight.
