California man survives car crash despite traffic pole nearly splitting his vehicle in half

A California man is lucky to be alive after an incident that nearly totaled his car, officials say.

The Irvine Police Department (IPD) said in an Instagram post that a man was hospitalized after his car “collided with a traffic light pole” at an intersection just after 1 a.m. local time on Friday, November 29.

IPD said its officers and partners from the Orange County Fire Authority responded to the scene and “quickly rescued the driver from the vehicle.” The man – who was not identified – suffered injuries and was taken to a local hospital.

“The driver was seriously injured and our thoughts are with him as he recovers,” the IPD said in its post, encouraging anyone with information about the incident to contact the department.

IPD did not say how the car ended up hitting the pole or whether speed or driving under the influence were factors in the accident.

The department released a photo of the white sports car after the incident. The pole appeared to have split the car in half and was sticking out of the middle of the car. The top of the car was badly bent and parts of the front of the car were lying on the road.

Police and firefighters could be seen behind the car assessing the damage and blocking off the road to prevent other vehicles from passing.

Several neighbors commented on the IPD post saying the area where the incident occurred, Modjeska Street and Still Night, is a popular racing location. One person wrote: “Cars are racing on this road all the way to entrance 241.”

Another said: “The amount of…cars on Irvine Blvd. after 10 p.m. is alarming.”

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Others sent their congratulations to the driver involved in the incident. One person wrote that they sent “thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery,” while another noted that the driver was “very lucky to have survived.”

IPD has not provided an update on the driver’s condition since the post was published. Anyone who witnessed the incident is asked to email [email protected].