1 Critically Hurt in Laguna Canyon Road Crash

A 27-year-old Costa Mesa man was critically injured Friday when he tried to make a U-turn on Laguna Canyon Road and was broadsided by a 1994 Ford Explorer behind him in the southbound lane, police said.

Canh Nguyen, who was driving a 1986 Toyota, was airlifted to Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center following the 3:30 p.m. crash, about a mile south of the San Diego Freeway, Irvine police Sgt. Craig Smith said.

Nguyen was in critical condition late Friday with major head injuries.

Laguna Canyon Road, the scene of numerous traffic deaths in recent years, was closed for four hours between El Toro Road and the San Diego Freeway as a result of the collision.

A passenger in the Toyota, 18-year-old Thao Nguyen of Costa Mesa, received minor injuries and was treated for back and leg pain at Irvine Medical Center.

The driver of the Explorer was unhurt.

Police said that neither alcohol nor excessive speed were factors in the crash. For an unknown reason, the Toyota slowed and began to make a U-turn, Smith said. The other driver, following several car lengths behind, tried to evade the Toyota.