Charges are pending against a driver who police say is believed to have intentionally hit an IDOT construction worker with her car, leaving him hospitalized, in Marengo.
The Marengo Fire and Rescue Districts and Marengo Police Department responded around 11:05 a.m. Wednesday to West Grant Highway and Park Drive for a pedestrian struck by a vehicle.
Marengo Fire and Rescue Districts Communication Specialist Alex Vucha said paramedics arrived within minutes and found a single-vehicle crash involving a construction worker near the intersection.
The adult male victim, identified as an Illinois Department of Transportation worker, was lying on the pavement injured, Vucha said.
A LifeNet medical helicopter was initially placed on standby but was canceled.
The worker was transported by ambulance to OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center in Rockford, a Level 1 trauma center, with moderate, non-life-threatening injuries.
A bystander told Lake and McHenry County Scanner that the worker was a flagger in the work zone. He could not stand up after the collision.
Vucha said the driver of the vehicle, an adult female, was uninjured.
She was transported to Northwestern Medicine Hospital in Woodstock for a psychological evaluation.
Marengo Police Department Sgt. Andrew Kjellgren said officers were informed that it appeared the driver of the vehicle intentionally struck the worker as he was controlling traffic for road work being performed in the area.
Grant Highway, also known as Route 20, was closed in both directions for 30 minutes, Vucha said.
Kjellgren said the investigation is active and the case is being reviewed by the McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Charges against the driver are pending, Kjellgren said, adding that the department will release the identity of the driver once charges are filed.