Driver Killed In Fiery Late-Night Hit-And-Run Crash In Fallbrook

FALLBROOK, CA — Investigators sought Tuesday to determine what caused a hit-and-run suspect to lose control of his SUV on a Fallbrook street, causing a fiery solo wreck that fatally injured him.

The 52-year-old man was headed east on East Fallbrook Street shortly before 11 p.m. Monday when his Chevrolet Tahoe rear-ended a Chevrolet 3500 pickup truck that had broken down in the roadway east of Debby Street, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Following the crash, the driver of the SUV fled, CHP public-affairs Officer Hunter Gerber said.

About a mile to the southeast, the Tahoe veered off Reche Road near Green Canyon Road, went down a steep embankment, struck a tree and caught fire.

The driver, whose name was withheld pending family notification, died at the scene of the wreck, which sparked a small brush fire, according to the CHP.

No other injuries were reported.

— City News Service