Man Dead, 2 Children Critically Injured In 4-Vehicle Beach Park Crash

By Mary Chappell

BEACH PARK, Ill. (CBS) — A man is dead and two children critically injured after a four-vehicle crash in Beach Park Friday evening, authorities said.

Lake County Sheriff's Deputies responded to Green Bay road north of Wadsworth Road at about 6:45 p.m. Preliminary investigation shows a 50-year-old Zion woman was driving a 2017 Jeep Patriot northbound on Green Bay Road and illegally passed a tow truck towing a semitractor-trailer so she was traveling northbound in the southbound lanes, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

The Jeep collided head on with a 2014 Kia Soul traveling southbound, driven by a 49-year-old man, also from Zion. The impact caused the Jeep to rotate and strike the tow truck, driven by a 35-year-old Kenosha man. The Jeep also collided with a Ford Explorer, driven by a unincorporated Zion woman, 58, authorities said.

The driver of the Kia was pronounced dead at Vista East Hospital and two boys in his car, 11 and 13, were critically injured. Authorities said neither boy was wearing a seatbelt.

The 11-year-old was flown to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital and the 13-year-old was taken via ambulance to Advocate Condell Medical Center. The driver of the Jeep was also taken to Advocate Condell with minor injuries and her passenger, a 60-year-old woman from Kenosha, was taken to Vista East with minor injuries.

The driver of the Ford and her passenger, a 24-year-old Zion man, were also taken to Vista East with minor injuries. The tow truck driver wasn't injured.

An autopsy for the driver of the Kia by the Lake County Coroner's Office is scheduled for Oct. 12.

The crash is being investigated by the Lake County Sheriff's Office Technical Crash Investigations Unit.