A horrifying hit-and-run crash was captured on home security footage Thursday night on Pacific Coast Highway near Big Rock Drive in Malibu leaving local residents on edge and authorities on the hunt for the driver who fled the scene. A speeding car, clocking speeds purportedly well over 100 miles per hour, erupted into a blaze following a head-on collision which involved multiple vehicles; one car's engine block was ejected from the chassis, landing inflamed on nearby property, according to KABC.
The incident resulted in at least one hospitalization, reminding the shaken Malibu community of a recent tragedy that claimed the lives of four Pepperdine students in October. KTLA reports a witness, Eddie Braun saw the speeding car before the crash, stating, "I was coming home from dinner…going about 55 to 60 miles per hour southbound on Pacific Coast Highway when this guy passed me at well over 100 miles per hour," Braun also recounted watching in horror as the vehicle met with disaster head-on into a bunch of cars. The frenzy of that evening left wreckage scattered, and despite residents' calls for safety measures and slower speeds on the notorious stretch of PCH, another testament to the road's harrowing record unfolded in fire and twisted metal.
Efforts to locate the responsible party have intensified with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department leading a search on the ground, bolstered by search and rescue teams sifting through the rugged nearby terrain; local authorities suggest that the driver may be badly injured due to the severe damage observed on the vehicles, as mentioned in NBC Los Angeles. Local residents like Terry Davis are urging for a reevaluation of driving behaviors along PCH, emphasizing that many drivers neglect red lights and speed limits, putting the entire community at perpetual risk.
In response to this latest crash and outcry from the community, city, county, and state officials are endorsing road safety measures which encompass increased enforcement, new speed signs, and the synchronization of traffic signals to better control the rush of cars along the 21 miles of PCH that slice through Malibu, seeking to prevent future incidents from escalating to such a critical point as the events that have recently unfolded, KTLA reports.
The authorities have called upon the public for assistance, anyone with information regarding the catastrophic hit-and-run incident on Thursday night is strongly encouraged to reach out to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to aid in the ongoing investigation and bring some measure of solace to a community too frequently ravaged by the violence of unchecked speed on its thoroughfare.
