A 10-year-old boy is “making progress every day” after he was struck by a vehicle while riding his bicycle in Johnsburg and had to be flown to the hospital.
The Johnsburg Police Department and McHenry Township Fire Protection District responded around 3:38 p.m. Tuesday to the intersection of Ringwood Road and Skyhawk Lane in Johnsburg for a vehicle crash with injuries.
Johnsburg Police Chief Keith Von Allmen said officers arrived and found a crash involving a bicyclist and a vehicle, which had occurred near the Johnsburg High School.
Officers began administering first aid to the victim.
An investigation was conducted and officers learned from independent witnesses that the vehicle was traveling westbound on Ringwood Road.
Von Allmen said the bicyclist, a 10-year-old boy, was crossing Ringwood Road northbound from Hickory Way.
The vehicle had the right of way and there was no crosswalk where the boy was crossing, Von Allmen said.
Paramedics transported the child to the helipad at Northwestern Medicine Hospital in McHenry.
The child was transferred to a LifeNet helicopter, which flew him to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge.
Von Allmen did not know the current condition of the child but said he was talking to officers at the scene.
McHenry resident Amy Lane said the 10-year-old, Jackson Werderitch, was riding his bike home from school with his friend when he was hit.
“Jackson is a wonderful kid, and is a phenomenal athlete. He loves football, baseball, basketball, hanging out with his best friend and his two brothers Colton and Bryce,” Lane said.
The boy has a “long road of recovery ahead” but is “making progress every day,” Lane said.
A GoFundMe account was created to help raise money for the Werderitch family. It has raised over $16,000 in a day.
The driver of the vehicle is cooperating with investigators to complete the investigation.
A crash investigation team was not requested and the roadway was not closed for an extended time.
No citations have been issued yet but the investigation remains ongoing, Von Allmen said.