The coroner has identified a 21-year-old man from Wauconda who died after a wrong-way driver crashed head-on into his vehicle on Route 12 in Fox Lake Thursday evening.
An autopsy performed Friday showed Anthony Herrera, 21, of Wauconda, died as a result of blunt force injuries from a crash, according to Lake County Coroner Jennifer Banek.
The Fox Lake Fire Protection District and Fox Lake Police Department responded around 9:40 p.m. Thursday to Route 12 between Route 59 and Route 134 in Fox Lake for a report of a vehicle crash with injuries.
Fox Lake Police Chief Dawn DeServi said a preliminary investigation showed a black Cadillac SRX was traveling southbound on Route 12 in the northbound lanes.
The Cadillac struck a Ford work van, which was traveling northbound on Route 12, DeServi said.
Firefighters arrived to find the drivers of both vehicles were trapped inside and needed to be extricated.
Paramedics reported the driver of the Ford work van, later identified as Herrera, was unconscious.
Firefighters extricated both drivers and paramedics transported them to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville.
Herrera was critically injured and died after arriving at the hospital, DeServi said.
The driver of the Cadillac, a 48-year-old man, suffered various lacerations and possible fractures. He was listed as stable in the hospital.
DeServi said both drivers were the sole occupants of their vehicles.
The Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team (MCAT) responded to assist the Fox Lake Police Department with the investigation.
Investigators worked for several hours at the scene reconstructing the crash.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Lake Villa Police Department, Round Lake Beach Police Department and Round Lake Police Department responded to the area to assist with the road closures and traffic control.
The roadway was reopened to normal traffic around 2:00 a.m., DeServi said.