Man critical, driver at large after hit-and-run crash in Hunting Park
HUNTING PARK (WPVI) -- Philadelphia police are trying to track down the driver who hit a 45-year-old man early Friday morning in the city's Hunting Park section.
It happened around 3 a.m. at the corner of 5th Street and Hunting Park Avenue.
George Camacho says he was running out for cigarettes when he saw the badly injured man in the intersection.
Camacho says, "I saw an individual laid out, discoloration, everything. So I turned him over and his face was all busted up. I was trying to make sure he was breathing."
Camacho says he called police and stayed with the 45-year-old victim, who was unconscious.
He tells us, "His nose was busted, he got some marks on his head. I pulled him into the sidewalk so he wouldn't get hit by a car and waited for the police."
Officers say the call first came in as a gunshot wound. But when responders arrived, the man's injuries showed instead that he had been hit by a vehicle.
Police say he was rushed to Temple University Hospital with head injuries and broken bones.
A woman who identified herself as the victim's wife said he was on his way home from his job as a maintenance worker.
Folks at a nearby grocery store say they saw the victim Thursday night, fixing a cooler in the store just a few hours before he was hit.
Neighborhood resident Juan Hernandez says, "He was in here last night, he did some job for this place and we were talking about another job he was going to do. He's a man everybody knows around here. He's a hardworking guy."
In the meantime, detectives collected car parts found in the road. They'll be examined for blood and clothing fibers to see if they're related to the crash.
In the daylight, officers came back to visit the local businesses in the area, many of which have surveillance cameras. Police are now going through that video hoping for a lead.
At last check the victim was still in critical condition at Temple University Hospital.
So far police say no witnesses have come forward.
Hernandez says, "If somebody sees something please call the police. He's got family, he's got kids, He's a good man."
If you have any information about this hit-and-run, Philadelphia detectives would like to hear from you.
