5 hospitalized in crash involving reckless driver in Seal Beach; search for suspect underway

At least five people have been hospitalized following a grisly multi-car crash in Seal Beach. 

Orange County Fire Authority crews were dispatched to the intersection of Pacific Coast Highway and Main Street just before 7:15 p.m. after learning of the collision. 

According to Seal Beach Police Department, they had received a call of a reckless driver in Huntington Beach before the collision occurred.

"It was like an explosion. It was the loudest thing I've ever heard," said one witness, who said that the suspect collided with a car making a left turn at the intersection. "He was doing like 80 miles an hour, I was told."

The five passengers of the other involved vehicle had either self-extricated or been helped out of the car by bystanders by the time firefighters arrived, all of whom were rushed to nearby hospitals for treatment.

Two of the patients were released as of Sunday afternoon, though the remaining three — all 17-year-old girls — remained in serious but stable condition.

Authorities say that the suspect ran from the area before they arrived and the search was ongoing. 

Wild surveillance footage shows the seconds that the reckless driver sped through the intersection, narrowly missing a group of pedestrians before slamming into the turning vehicle. 

Residents of Hill Neighborhood were asked to shelter in place as officers searched for the suspect Saturday evening. 

All lanes of PCH and Main St. were closed in both directions for several hours due to the ongoing investigation.