3 people sent to hospitals after crash on 73 in Newport Coast

Authorities are investigating a collision involving a cement mixer truck and three other vehicles Thursday on the 73 Toll Road in Newport Coast that sent three people to hospitals.

The crash occurred about 8:40 a.m. when a cement mixer tried to stop on the northbound 73 Newport Coast Drive offramp but lost control and rolled over into the eastbound Newport Coast Drive lanes, where the cement mixer hit a BMW and a Toyota pickup, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The cement mixer then slid into the path of a Honda Accord, which could not avoid hitting the mixer, the CHP said in a news release.

The cement mixer’s driver, a 49-year-old man from Orange, received minor injuries and was taken to Orange County Global Medical Center in Santa Ana. The BMW’s driver, a 49-year-old Newport Coast woman, and the Toyota pickup’s driver, a 40-year-old Santa Ana man, were taken to Mission Regional Medical Center with moderate injuries, the CHP said. The Honda Accord’s driver was not injured.

All lanes on the southbound 73 and the No. 1 lane on the northbound side were closed until about 2:30 p.m., according to Officer Denise Quesada of the California Highway Patrol.