A crash on Pacific Coast Highway in Seal Beach last night sent five people to trauma centers.

The crash between two vehicles was reported at 7:14 p.m. on Pacific Coast Highway at Main Street, said Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Sean Doran.

The driver of the vehicle that caused the collision fled on foot and was not immediately located, according to Seal Beach police. The driver and four passengers of the other vehicle sustained serious injuries, authorities said.

When officers arrived at the scene, they found that the suspect’s vehicle came to rest against the bus bench in front of the Chase Bank at 801 Pacific Coast Highway. The suspect fled the scene on foot into The Hill, a residential neighborhood. The Hill is bordered on the southwest by Pacific Coast Highway, on the east by Seal Beach Boulevard and on the north by Gum Grove Park.

The suspect was described as an unidentified Hispanic man, 18 to 20 years of age, approximately 5’10” tall, who was last seen wearing a maroon shirt. Officers from the Seal Beach Police Department and the Huntington Beach Police Department conducted an extensive area search but were unable to locate him, according to authorities.

As for the five trauma patients, they all got out of the vehicle before firefighters arrived, Doran said.

Ambulances from Seal Beach and Huntington Beach took the patients to trauma centers for treatment, he said.

Two of the patients have since been discharged, and the other three patients—all 17-year-old girls from Orange County—remain hospitalized in serious but stable condition, according to police.

The investigation remains ongoing, and the Seal Beach Police Department is seeking the public’s assistance in locating the suspect. Anyone with information is asked to contact Traffic Investigator Officer James Dowdell at (562) 799-4100 ext. 1627 or [email protected].

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with more information and with a video from the Seal Beach Police Department.