Police say they have charged a 21-year-old man after he allegedly drove drunk and crashed into a tree in Crystal Lake, leaving him trapped and in critical condition before being flown to the hospital.
The Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Department and Crystal Lake Police Department responded around 1 a.m. Friday to the area of Surrey Lane and Abbington Drive in Crystal Lake for a report of a vehicle crash with injuries.
Police officers arrived first and found that a male victim was trapped in the vehicle and the car was smoking.
Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Department Battalion Chief Jim Sustek said the incident was upgraded due to the report of entrapment. A medical helicopter was placed on standby.
Fire crews arrived on the scene in five minutes and found a single-vehicle crash with an occupant trapped inside the vehicle, Sustek said.
Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Deputy Chief Mark Menzel said the victim, a man in his 20s, was the sole occupant of the car.
A LifeNet medical helicopter was requested due to the extent of the victim’s injuries after the vehicle crashed into a tree.
Firefighters worked for approximately 15 minutes to safely extricate the victim, Sustek said.
The medical helicopter was called to Northwestern Medicine Huntley Hospital.
Sustek said an ambulance transported the victim to the hospital’s helipad where they met with the helicopter and transferred the patient to the flight crew.
The LifeNet helicopter flew the victim to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville, which is a Level 1 trauma center. Menzel said the man was in critical condition when transported.
Crystal Lake Deputy Police Chief Richard Neumann said officers identified the driver as a 21-year-old Crystal Lake man.
An investigation showed the man was driving his gray SUV northbound on Abbington Lane and attempted to turn eastbound onto Surrey Lane.
The SUV left the roadway for an undetermined reason and collided with the tree, Neumann said.
Neumann said the victim’s injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.
He has since been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and given a future court date.
The incident remains under investigation by the Crystal Lake Police Department.