SAN JOSE -- A San Jose police officer who suffered several serious injuries in a freak accident on Interstate 680 Wednesday night is in stable condition in a local hospital Thursday.

Officer Enrique Garcia was off-duty Wednesday night when a 16-inch tow hitch and its solid steel ball came through his windshield at 65 mph and struck him in the face, San Jose police Sgt. Nick Muyo said.

Garcia, a media spokesperson for the Police Department, suffered a concussion, an injured left arm and several facial fractures that will require surgery, Muyo said.

"It's a traffic accident. Not a criminal act," Muyo said.

Garcia was driving his personal vehicle around 7:56 p.m. southbound on Interstate Highway 680 near U.S. Highway 101 when the accident occurred, according to Muyo said.

Traffic in both directions was shut on Highway 680 for more than an hour Wednesday evening between King Road and Capital Expressway.

It is not yet clear to investigators whether the tow hitch was in the road or if it came off a vehicle in front of Garcia's car.

Garcia is expected to make a full recovery, but there is no estimate of how long that will take, Muyo said.

Garcia is in good spirits, according to Muyo.

"We want to thank everybody for their thoughts and wishes," Muyo said.

No one is being sought for criminal activity in connection with what happened. However, police are interested in speaking with anyone that may have information about the incident, Muyo said.

Anyone with information is asked to call San Jose police traffic investigations officer Kevin Cassidy at (408) 277-4654.