The coroner has identified a 22-year-old man who was killed after a box truck and semi-truck crashed head-on, leaving two others seriously injured, in Long Grove Tuesday.
An autopsy performed Wednesday showed Rene Sepulveda, 22, of Island Lake, died as a result of blunt force injuries as a result of a vehicle crash, according to Lake County Coroner Jennifer Banek.
The Long Grove Fire Protection District and Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded around 10:10 a.m. Tuesday to Route 53 (Hicks Road) north of Lake Cook Road in Long Grove for a head-on crash with injuries.
Sheriff’s deputies arrived and found a box truck and semi-truck collided head-on.
Firefighters reported the vehicles had heavy damage and two occupants were trapped inside the wreckage.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said a preliminary investigation shows the driver of a 2021 Isuzu box truck was traveling northbound on Route 53.
The Isuzu, driven by Sepulveda, crossed into the southbound lanes of traffic for an unknown reason, Covelli said.
The Isuzu drove directly into the path of a southbound 2016 Freightliner semi-truck, driven by a 49-year-old Dixon man.
The box truck and semi-truck, which was hauling a loaded trailer, collided head-on.
Sepulveda sustained major injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, Covelli said.
An adult male passenger in the box truck was transported by ambulance to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville with critical injuries.
The driver of the semi-truck was transported by ambulance to Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights with serious injuries.
Route 53 between Lake Cook Road and Long Grove Road remained shut down Tuesday afternoon for the crash investigation.
The crash remains under investigation by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Technical Crash Investigations Unit.