Police believe a white hatchback involved in an early-morning crash at Charlestown may have been stolen.
The driver lost control of the car on the Pacific Highway near Warners Bay Road and slammed into a wall at about 1.15am on Monday.
The driver and two passengers fled, a third passenger - a female - suffered a head injury and was taken to hospital.
She's reported to be in a serious condition.
Another occupant of the car - a male- turned up at the John Hunter Hospital 2 hours later with a seat belt burn injury.
The southbound lanes of the highway were closed for almost 6 hours - the crash scene has now been cleared.
