SUV Hits Fire Hydrant, Rolls Over

A driver was hospitalized late Tuesday night after the SUV he was driving rolled over in the 1800 block of Pacific Coast Highway near Prospect Avenue.

and from both Redondo Beach and Torrance responded to the scene and blocked off Pacific Coast Highway in the area around the crash site.

At about 10:15 p.m., the dark-colored SUV hit four cars parked on the southbound side of Pacific Coast Highway before running into a fire hydrant and flipping the vehicle, according to police and witness reports. The man was ejected from the SUV.

"We thought it was a gunshot, it was so loud," said Palos Verdes Inn guest Emma, who declined to give her last name.

"By the time we got out here, he was on foot, trying to run away," said Angela Fishwick, who was staying at the across the street. She said another witness subdued the man.

According to Fishwick, the driver kept repeating, "This is going to ruin my life. My life is over."

"He was shaken more than anything," said Torrance resident Chris Grenier, who was one of the first witnesses at the scene. Grenier added that the driver was lucky, as the crash could have been worse. "When I ran up, I was thinking, 'You know, we'll have to pull someone out of the car.'"

According to witnesses and firefighters, the man appeared intoxicated, but otherwise OK.

"He's talking; he's fine; he's possibly inebriated," said Torrance Fire Department Capt. Otto Stiefel.

The victim was the only person in the car, police said.