The coroner has released the identity of a Corvette driver who died after the sheriff said he was recklessly passing vehicles before an airborne rollover crash near Harvard Saturday.
The Harvard Fire Protection District and McHenry County Sheriff’s Office responded around 3:03 p.m. Saturday to the 24700 block of Route 173 in unincorporated Harvard for a report of a vehicle crash with injuries.
Harvard Fire Protection District Public Information Officer Alex Vucha said initial 911 calls indicated that a vehicle had rolled over.
The callers reported the car came to rest on its roof and an occupant was possibly trapped inside.
First responders arrived on the scene shortly after and found a single vehicle involved in the crash with heavy damage, Vucha said.
The sheriff’s office said Monday that the 1984 Chevrolet Corvette was traveling eastbound on Route 173.
The Corvette was passing vehicles at a high rate of speed prior to the crash, sheriff’s officials said, citing a preliminary investigation.
The Corvette exited the roadway to the north, went airborne and rolled over. It came to rest on its roof.
Vucha said the car was located approximately 75 feet off the roadway in a field.
McHenry County Coroner Dr. Michael Rein said Wednesday that the driver was identified as Douglas Fowler, 57, of Capron.
Fowler sustained fatal injuries in the crash and was pronounced dead at the scene. No other vehicles were involved in the crash.
Route 173 was shut down in both directions from White Oaks Road to County Line Road for several hours before being reopened around 8 p.m.
The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office Major Crash Investigation Unit and McHenry County Coroner’s Office are investigating the crash, which they say speed and reckless driving are believed to be factors in the cause.
An autopsy performed on Fowler showed he died as a result of blunt force injuries to the head and body from the crash, Rein said. Toxicology results are pending.