A rideshare driver suffered a medical issue on Route 45 in Third Lake, causing him to travel at least 300 feet off-road and crash into the side of a physical therapy business Sunday evening.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office and Gurnee Fire Department responded around 6:25 p.m. Sunday to Athletico Physical Therapy (Gurnee West), 34572 Route 45, Suite A, in Third Lake, for a report of a car that crashed into a building.
Deputies and firefighters arrived to find a sedan that had crashed into the north side of the Athletico building.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said the driver of the sedan – who was working for a rideshare company at the time – suffered a medical issue, causing him to drive into the building.
Tire marks at the scene showed the sedan was traveling southbound on Route 45 when it started to veer to the right shoulder near West Cottage Avenue, which is just north of where the crash occurred.
The sedan continued to veer off the roadway, jumped a curb, traveled through the grass and parking lot at The Goddard School, and ended up into the side of the building.
In total, the car traveled at least 300-350 feet off-road, according to distance measurements obtained on Google Maps.
The driver and a passenger in the sedan were evaluated by firefighter-paramedics but they were not injured and they both refused to be transported to the hospital, Gurnee Battalion Fire Chief Nick Perry said.
The business is closed on Sundays, so firefighters used emergency keys to enter the building and assess the damage.
There was approximately three inches of intrusion into the building due to the impact, Perry said.
An office area is located on the side of the building where the crash happened.
The impact also caused stress fractures in the drywall and knocked over debris and other items in the office, Perry added.
Perry said the damage was mostly cosmetic. There was no structural damage that would cause a collapse risk, he added.
A representative from the Village of Third Lake’s building department responded to the scene to assess the structure.
The village did not deem the building uninhabitable, so business will continue as usual, Covelli said.
A tow truck from Wildwood Service removed the car.