Man Escapes With Minor Injuries as Car Rolls, Ignites

A car rolled several times across the Riverside Freeway and then burst into flames during rush hour Thursday morning, but the driver escaped with minor injuries.

Joshua Ian Brown, 21, of Yorba Linda was eastbound at 6:20 a.m. and was trying to change lanes near the Costa Mesa Freeway interchange when he lost control of his car, California Highway Patrol Officer Angel Johnson said.

His car hit the right guardrail, then overturned across all lanes. It finally stopped in the fast lane and caught on fire, she said.

“He is so lucky he was wearing a lap belt,” Johnson said. “He could have been ejected or thrown around in the car and knocked unconscious, so that when the car started to catch on fire he wouldn’t have been able to pull himself out.”

Brown was treated for minor abrasions to his neck and face and released, she said.

CHP officers closed all eastbound lanes to remove the car. The other lanes were reopened at 6:50 a.m. and the fast lane at 7:30 a.m.