A man was hospitalized in critical condition Wednesday evening after being stabbed during a fight in Central Long Beach, according to authorities.

The stabbing happened just before 6 p.m. in the 1100 block of Hill Street, the Long Beach Police Department said.

Police said the man was involved in a fight with an unknown suspect. The fight escalated and the suspect stabbed the man in the upper body, police said.

Long Beach Fire Department personnel took the man to a local hospital in critical but stable condition, police said.

Police recovered a knife, but the suspect fled the scene before they arrived, authorities said.

No suspect information is known at this time and a motive for the stabbing remains under investigation, according to police.