A woman is in critical condition after authorities say she drove off the roadway at a high rate of speed and struck several trees, leaving her trapped in the vehicle, near Lake Villa.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office and Lake Villa Fire Protection District responded around 2:40 p.m. Wednesday to Route 45 south of Kelly Road in unincorporated Lake Villa for a vehicle crash with injuries.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said deputies located a Toyota Rav4 that had struck several trees.
A preliminary investigation shows the Toyota, driven by a 74-year-old Lake Villa woman, was traveling southbound on Route 45.
Witnesses reported to police that the Toyota appeared to be traveling at a high rate of speed.
The vehicle crossed into the northbound lanes of traffic for unknown reasons and drove off the roadway, Covelli said.
The Toyota went into the ditch line on the east side of the roadway and struck several trees.
It took firefighters approximately 30 minutes to extricate the trapped driver from the vehicle.
The Antioch Fire Department and Gurnee Fire Department responded to the scene to assist.
The woman was transported to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville with critical injuries, Covelli said.
Route 45 was closed for several hours during the crash investigation.
The crash remains under investigation by the Lake County Sheriffโs Office Technical Crash Investigations Team.