Briefly in the news

-- Deepa Bharath

The rush-hour crash that tied up all southbound lanes of the Corona

del Mar Freeway for more than four hours Thursday was a hit-and-run,

officials said Friday.

The tractor-trailer that was traveling southbound approaching

MacArthur Boulevard about 3:45 p.m. Thursday swerved to avoid hitting a

gold BMW that suddenly pulled into the third lane ahead of the big rig,

said California Highway Patrol Officer Greg Garcia.

A van that tried to avoid the big rig hit the median and overturned,

he said.

“The BMW then fled the scene,” Garcia said. “And no one got the

license plate number.”

The driver of the big rig, identified as Timothy Bradley, 35, of

Anaheim Hills, was taken to Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo. Officials

initially said he could have suffered trauma, but said Friday that he was

not seriously injured.

The driver of the van, 40-year-old Crispin Sosa of Fullerton, was

taken to UC Irvine Medical Center, and another passenger of the big rig

was taken to Hoag Hospital. Both suffered minor injuries, Garcia said.

He said the incident is still under investigation and that officers

are looking for the driver of the gold BMW.

California Highway Patrol had issued a SigAlert Thursday at 4 p.m.

that lasted until 7:45 p.m.