A two-vehicle crash involving a Pace bus sent six people to the hospital for treatment of injuries at 22nd Street and Joppa Avenue in Zion Wednesday afternoon. | Photo: Zion Fire & Rescue Department

Police say the driver of an SUV was at fault when they ran a stop sign and caused a crash with a Pace bus that sent six people to the hospital in Zion Wednesday.

The Zion Fire & Rescue Department and Zion Police Department responded around 2:37 p.m. Wednesday to the area of 22nd Street and Joppa Avenue for a report of a vehicle crash with injuries.

Zion Fire & Rescue Department Battalion Chief Eric Troy said crews arrived to find a two-vehicle crash involving a Pace bus.

The bus sustained front-end damage, including a cracked windshield. The second vehicle involved, a Chevrolet Tahoe, sustained heavy damage.

A two-vehicle crash involving a Pace bus sent six people to the hospital for treatment of injuries at 22nd Street and Joppa Avenue in Zion Wednesday afternoon. | Photo: Joe Shuman/J. Shuman Photography (2024)

Zion Police Department Lt. Paul Kehrli said the Chevrolet had struck a tree after striking the bus.

Both occupants of the Chevrolet were able to self-extricate themselves from the vehicle.

First responders determined six people required transport to local hospitals, Troy said. Their injuries were believed to be non-life-threatening.

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The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated to the Working Still Alarm level for mutual aid fire and EMS resources.

A two-vehicle crash involving a Pace bus sent six people to the hospital for treatment of injuries at 22nd Street and Joppa Avenue in Zion Wednesday afternoon. | Photo: Joe Shuman/J. Shuman Photography (2024)

The Winthrop Harbor Fire Department, Newport Township Fire Protection District and Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin Fire and Rescue assisted with transporting victims to both Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan and Froedtert South Medical Center in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin.

Fire Departments from Gurnee, Lake Villa and Round Lake assisted Zion with covering other calls during the incident.

Kehrli said among the six transported were the two occupants from the Chevrolet as well as the bus driver and three bus passengers.

A two-vehicle crash involving a Pace bus sent six people to the hospital for treatment of injuries at 22nd Street and Joppa Avenue in Zion Wednesday afternoon. | Photo: Joe Shuman/J. Shuman Photography (2024)

A preliminary investigation shows the Chevrolet failed to stop at the east-west stop sign at the intersection of 22nd St and Joppa Avenue, Kehrli said.

The Chevrolet was struck by the Pace bus as it traveled northbound. The bus did not have a stop sign.

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Pace is fully cooperating with the investigation, Kehrli said. Intoxication is not suspected to be a factor in the crash.

No citations have been issued and no charges have been filed yet. The case remains under investigation by the Zion Police Department Accident Investigation Unit.