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Laguna Head-On Kills 1, Injures 3, Starts Fire

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Times Staff Writer

A flaming, head-on car collision on Coast Highway in the Emerald Bay area of Laguna Beach on Sunday night killed one person, injured three others, ignited a house fire and closed the road to traffic for half an hour, authorities reported.

The identities of the person killed and those injured were not immediately available.

The brush fire briefly triggered fears of blazes spreading through the affluent, seaside Emerald Bay community that flanks Coast Highway. The area is the home of many prominent people, including former baseball commissioner Peter Ueberroth.

According to Laguna Beach Sgt. Mike Hall, the traffic accident occurred at 7:06 p.m. He said a Jeep Wagoneer traveling south on Coast Highway veered to avoid hitting a car that was coming from an exit road in Emerald Bay.

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“In attempting to avoid the car, the driver of the Jeep Wagoneer pulled into the opposite lane and struck a BMW that was northbound,” Hall said. “Both vehicles caught on fire.”

Hall said the fatally injured person was in the Jeep Wagoneer, as were two of the the injured people.

“The BMW had only the male driver, who was also injured,” Hall said.

Flames from the collision ignited dry brush along the roadway by Emerald Bay. One residence in the affluent community briefly caught on fire, according to the Orange County Fire Department. A fire department spokeswoman said the blaze was quickly extinguished, with about $1,000 damage to the roof of the house. The exact location of the house was not immediately available.

Hall said the wreckage caused the busy coastal highway to be closed in both directions for half an hour. “People were sitting in their cars waiting for the lanes to open again,” he said. “Finally we were able to get traffic moving one lane at a time.”

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