Three people were injured after a multi-vehicle crash left a semi-tractor-trailer truck on top of a car, crushing the vehicle, on Interstate 94 in Lake Forest Monday afternoon.
The Illinois State Police, Lake Forest Fire Department and Deerfield-Bannockburn Fire Protection District responded around 4:29 p.m. Monday to Interstate 94 near the 21 mile marker in Lake Forest for a vehicle crash with injuries.
Lake Forest Fire Department Battalion Chief Erik Kositzki said the incident was upgraded while crews were responding after receiving reports of entrapment.
Firefighters arrived to find the crash in the eastbound, also known as southbound, lanes of Interstate 94 just north of Half Day Road.
A semi-tractor-trailer truck, a Dodge Ram pickup truck and a Toyota Corolla were involved in the crash, which occurred in the far left lane.
Kositzki said the Dodge and the semi-truck collided first and then the semi-truck crushed the Toyota against the inside wall.
The semi-truck’s trailer landed partially on top of the Toyota and the semi-truck cab struck the jersey barrier.
The Toyota sustained severe damage, the Dodge sustained moderate damage and the semi-truck sustained moderate front-end damage, Kositzki said.
All three vehicles were only occupied by their drivers and they were able to self-extricate or were assisted by bystanders prior to the fire department arriving.
Kositzki said two adult victims were transported to the hospital with minor injuries in stable condition. A third driver was treated at the scene.
Two of the four lanes on southbound Interstate 94 were shut down for approximately an hour and a half.
Lin-Mar Towing and Recovery responded and used a rotator crane and flatbed trucks to remove the vehicles, Kositzki said.
Lake Forest Fire Department Deputy Chief Christopher Roberts said firefighters also mitigated a minor diesel fuel leak from the semi-truck. No hazardous cargo was inside the trailer.
“The Lake Forest Fire Department would like to thank our mutual aid partners and first responders for their swift and coordinated response,” Roberts said.
Illinois State Police also said a light pole was knocked down onto the left shoulder of the northbound lanes.
State police did not say what caused the crash and said further information was not immediately available.