1 Dies, 2 Hurt in Collision on Laguna Canyon Road

One man was killed and two seriously injured Friday night in a head-on collision of a compact car and a van on a straightaway section of Laguna Canyon Road, the California Highway Patrol reported.

A third vehicle slammed into the wreckage, and the driver, who was slightly injured, was later arrested on suspicion of drunk driving.

The 6:20 p.m. accident closed the narrow, fatality-plagued highway for more than three hours as traffic was rerouted. The accident scene, 1.8 miles north of El Toro Road, was a clutter of twisted vehicles, pieces of blood-soaked clothes, fragments of metal and shards of glass.

“When I got here, it was like a battlefield,” CHP Officer Steve Bell said.

Bell said the driver of the compact car was headed south to Laguna Beach when, for unknown reasons, he veered into the northbound lane, striking an oncoming van. That van was then struck a second time by another northbound van. The two collisions threw the driver and a passenger in the first van into the road.

‘Very Critical’ Condition

Bell said the two men, who were not identified but were said to be in their 20s, were taken to Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center in Mission Viejo, where they were listed in “very critical” condition with multiple fractures and internal injuries, according to Sue Donofiro, the nursing supervisor.

The driver of the car--a man in his late 20s or early 30s--apparently was killed on impact, the CHP said. His name was not released pending notification of next of kin.

Bell said he had no idea why the car driver had veered into the path of the oncoming van. He noted that there were no skid marks at the accident scene, indicating that the car veered so quickly into the path of the oncoming van that neither driver had time to brake. “He (the driver of the first northbound van) didn’t have a chance to take evasive action,” Bell said.

While much of the two- or three-lane road is curved, the area where the accident took place is straight and visibility was clear.

The driver of the second van was Keith Ring, 24, of Anaheim, Bell said. Ring suffered minor injuries and was taken to Saddleback Community Hospital, where he was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving, Bell said.

Laguna Canyon Road is among the deadliest highways in California. More than 30 people have been killed in the last 10 years on the narrow road, and the California Department of Highways has sought to widen it. Laguna Beach city government and many residents have opposed the widening plans, saying it would ruin the environment, and instead have pushed for warning signs and traffic signals.

Bell, at the accident scene Friday night, said he had investigated scores of fatal or serious accidents on Laguna Canyon Road. He said he favored building a divider between the north- and south-bound lanes. He added that he thought a divider might have prevented Friday night’s collision.