All inmates have been released from the hospital after a prisoner transport bus crash that sent 19 people to the hospital and left one of the drivers unconscious in Hainesville.
The Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District and Grayslake-Hainesville Police Department responded around 1 p.m. Wednesday to Route 120 and Hainesville Road in Hainesville for a report of a vehicle crash with injuries.
The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office said one of their inmate transport buses was transporting inmates to the McHenry County Jail in Woodstock.
The bus, which was coming from the Lake County Jail, was involved in a crash with a Chevrolet SUV in the intersection.
Grayslake Police Chief Jeff Myhra said the transport bus was traveling westbound on Route 120 when the Chevrolet attempted to make a left turn onto northbound Hainesville Road.
The bus was occupied by two McHenry County correctional officers, 15 Lake County Jail inmates being housed in the McHenry County Jail and one McHenry County Jail inmate, according to Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli.
Myhra said all prisoners were accounted for following the crash.
The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated to the fourth alarm level, bringing ambulances from across Lake and McHenry counties to the scene.
All of the inmates from the bus and the two officers were transported to four area hospitals.
The driver of the Chevrolet was also transported to the hospital.
Myhra said the driver of the bus was unconscious at the scene when officers arrived.
Covelli said everyone involved between the two vehicles suffered injuries believed to be non-life-threatening.
Numerous Grayslake police officers, sheriff’s deputies and other police officers responded due to the number of inmates involved.
All of the ambulances transporting the inmates were followed by either Grayslake police officers or Lake County sheriff’s deputies, Covelli said.
The inmates were in custody at the hospital and under the supervision of Lake County sheriff’s deputies and corrections officers, McHenry County sheriff’s corrections officers or Grayslake police officers.
Covelli said Thursday morning that all of the inmates have since been discharged from the hospital and were back in the McHenry County Jail.
Myhra said Thursday morning that he did not know whether the two corrections officers had been released from the hospital yet.
Myhra said it is unclear who was at fault as there were conflicting witness statements. The Grayslake-Hainesville Police Department continues investigating the cause of the crash.