A Grayslake woman has died months after she was critically injured in an offset head-on crash that seriously injured two other women on the border of Kildeer and Lake Zurich.
The Lake Zurich Fire Rescue Department and Kildeer Police Department responded around 6:15 p.m. on February 20 to the area of Route 22 and Quentin Road in Kildeer for a vehicle crash with injuries.
Fire crews arrived and reported finding a two-vehicle collision with heavy damage and entrapment in the intersection.
Kildeer Chief of Police Steve Balinski said at the time that officers found a 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class SUV and a 2025 Toyota Camry sedan.
An investigation showed the Mercedes-Benz was traveling southbound on Quentin Road at Route 22.
The Mercedes-Benz was attempting to make a turn onto eastbound Route 22, Balinski said.
The Toyota was traveling northbound on Quentin Road entering Route 22 when the Mercedes-Benz collided with it.
The driver of the Mercedes-Benz, a 69-year-old woman, suffered serious injuries and was transported by paramedics to Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington.
She was later released from the hospital after being treated for her injuries, Balinski said.
Balinski said the driver of the Toyota suffered critical injuries and was transported to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville. She remained hospitalized after the crash due to her extensive injuries.
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office identified her as Joan Smagacz, 73, of Grayslake.
Smagacz died at Endeavor Health Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights on Friday, just over four months after the crash.
The medical examiner’s office has not ruled her official cause or manner of death but indicated that it was related to the February vehicle crash.
The passenger in the Toyota, a 78-year-old woman, suffered serious injuries and was transported to Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital.
The Kildeer Police Department requested the assistance of the Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team (MCAT) due to the life-threatening injuries that Smagacz suffered.
Balinski said there was no indication of impairment being a factor in the crash based on the preliminary investigation.
The Kildeer Police Department, Lake Zurich Police Department, Hawthorn Woods Police Department and members of MCAT responded to the scene.
The intersection was shut down for approximately three and a half hours. Members of the Citizen Emergency Response Team directed traffic during the time the intersection was closed, Balinski said.
No charges or citations have been announced by the police department.