12 hurt as car drives into crowd at LA boardwalk

In this image take from a security camera, pedestrians scatter as a car drives through a packed afternoon crowd along the Venice Beach boardwalk in Los Angeles, Saturday, Aug. 3, 2013. At least a dozen people were injured, two of them critically, according to police.
In this image take from a security camera, pedestrians scatter as a car drives through a packed afternoon crowd along the Venice Beach boardwalk in Los Angeles, Saturday, Aug. 3, 2013. At least a dozen people were injured, two of them critically, according to police.

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A car drove into a crowd of people walking along the famed Venice Beach boardwalk early Saturday, injuring a dozen people before the driver fled the busy Los Angeles tourist site.

The driver and sedan had yet to be located more than two hours after the 6 p.m. crash, police Officer Jorge Torres. Police were looking for a dark-colored Dodge Charger or Avenger. The driver was a man described as having sandy blond hair and estimated to be in his mid-20s, authorities said.

Multiple witnesses reported that the driver appeared to be "moving purposefully" and in control of the car as it plowed through the crowd, Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey said.

Firefighters were surveying the sprawling crowd looking for injured, Humphrey said.

Twelve injured had been counted, with 10 of them hospitalized. Two were hurt seriously and two critically, Humphrey said. He had no details on the identities of the victims or their injuries.

The car was still moving as it drove out of sight of firefighters and the people who were hit.

The Venice boardwalk is a cultural hub in a part of Los Angeles known for its eccentricities. It is home to galleries, restaurants, tattoo shops, skateboard parks and the famous outdoor weight room known as Muscle Beach.

Jogger Daniel Regidor was a short distance from the crash when it happened and as he approached he saw "people screaming, running."

"When I came upon the scene, there were a bunch of people on the ground, bloodied," he told the Los Angeles Times. "Some looked pretty mangled, head injuries, just a lot of blood."