A student has filed a lawsuit after he was flown to the hospital with serious injuries after being struck in the face by a machine part during class at McHenry County College in Crystal Lake.
Steven Parker, 40, filed a lawsuit earlier this month in McHenry County Circuit Court against McHenry County College, formally registered as Friends of McHenry County College Foundation, and Haas Automation, Inc.
The lawsuit complaint said Parker was a student at the college enrolled in precision machining.
The man was attending the class at McHenry County College, 8900 Northwest Highway in Crystal Lake, on November 3.
The complaint said Parker was being instructed on the use of a lathe, which is a machine that spins a piece of material while a cutting tool shapes it.
The chuck came off the machine and struck Parker in the face as he was being instructed on the use of the lathe, the complaint said.
The lawsuit says that McHenry County College and Haas Automation should have known that the chuck was loose, causing a dangerous condition.
Haas Automation advertises itself as the largest machine tool builder in the Western world.
The suit said McHenry County College owed a duty to Parker to exercise the care required of an educational facility providing precision machining to its students in McHenry County.
The suit also said that Haas Automation was negligent by manufacturing the lathe machine with a loose chuck.
Parker was permanently injured, suffered pain and suffering, the permanent loss of normal life, sustained lost wages and will require future medical care, the complaint said.
The Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Department and McHenry County College Police responded around 11:41 a.m. to the school and paramedics requested a LifeNet medical helicopter to also respond.
An ambulance transported Parker from the school campus to the helipad at Northwestern Medicine Hospital in Woodstock.
A Mercyhealth REACT helicopter responded and the victim was transferred to the flight crew.
The victim was airlifted to Mercyhealth Javon Bea Hospital — Riverside in Rockford, which is a Level 1 trauma center.
McHenry County College Public Information Officer Christina Haggerty said at the time of the incident that the victim injured was a current student who was receiving treatment and was in class when it occurred.
“As the health, safety, and well-being of our students are our top priority, it is important to protect this student’s privacy at this time,” Haggerty said.
A parent of a McHenry County College student told Lake and McHenry County Scanner that the incident happened in a shop classroom during a machining class.
Parker, who has children and is a former Marine, was struck in the head by a part and immediately collapsed to the ground.
The woman said her son ran to get an emergency kit and another student called 911.
“The teachers were attending to him the best they could. My son went outside to wait for the ambulance so he could direct them to the room. He said it was definitely a head/brain injury,” she said.
The lawsuit seeks an unspecified amount in excess of $50,000. An initial court hearing in the suit is set for July 6.