A man in his thirties is dead after a fatal hit-and-run on the west side of Vancouver early Sunday morning.

Two men were skateboarding in the 6900-block of Heather Street and West 54th Avenue around 2:30 a.m. when a northbound car struck one of them. The driver than fled the scene without stopping.

The skateboarder, who friends have identified as warehouse worker and musician Ryan Barron, was rushed to hospital but later died.

The Vancouver Police Collision Investigation Unit stayed at the scene throughout the night, and an investigation is ongoing.

Images from the scene showed a broken skateboard, a shoe, a hat, and a backpack lying on the ground.

Co-worker Vince Man said Barron had recently been promoted to supervisor because he was so good with people.

“I’m pretty angry at the guy who left - what a coward he is or she is, whoever it is hit somebody, took his life, and decided to leave,” said Man. 

“He's not just a co-worker, he was a brother, he was a boyfriend, he was someone's son. You need to come forward. “

Neighbours told CTV News that the long, straight street is popular with skateboarders – and fast drivers.

“The young kids are at night, they race up and down here,” said Edward Chisham. “You know they're in a sports car and they're racing and you can hear it.”

There are speedbumps on Heather Street, one block south of the hit-and-run, but residents say they would like to see more up and down the street.

The cause of the collision has not yet been determined, and police are asking the driver to come forward. Video of the suspect vehicle was captured on neighbourhood surveillance cameras.

The VPD is looking for an older silver Mitsubishi car with new driver’s side front-end and wheel damage that is believed to have been involved in the accident.

“We don’t know why the driver fled the scene,” said Sgt. Randy Fincham. “There was enough damage to the vehicle that leads us to believe the driver does know that he or she hit somebody and we're giving them the opportunity to turn themselves into us and explain what happened before we come and find that driver.”

“I don’t why people don’t stop – [the driver] must have known,” added Chisham. “It’s sad, it’s so sad.”

Anyone with information about this collision or the vehicle involved is asked to call the Vancouver Police at (604) 717-3012 or Crime Stoppers at 1 (800) 222-8477.

With files from CTV Vancouver’s Shannon Paterson