One person was flown to the hospital with critical, life-threatening injuries and another person was seriously injured after a crash involving a car and a semi-truck that shut down Route 14 for hours near Woodstock Monday.
The Woodstock Fire/Rescue District and the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office responded around 2:55 p.m. Monday to the intersection of Route 14 and Hartland Road in unincorporated Woodstock for a report of a vehicle crash with injuries.
Firefighters, paramedics and law enforcement officers arrived to find a two-vehicle crash involving a Jeep and a semi-truck with moderate to heavy damage, according to Woodstock Fire/Rescue District Public Information Officer Alex Vucha.
All occupants had exited their vehicles prior to first responders’ arrival.
Paramedics began providing emergency medical care after determining that three occupants of the Jeep had suffered injuries, including two with critical injuries, Vucha said.
Firefighters also conducted an initial assessment of the semi-truck and confirmed that no safety concerns involving the truck or its cargo were present.
Two medical helicopters were requested to the scene due to the severity of the injuries. One of them was canceled because of a prolonged estimated arrival time, Vucha said.
An additional ambulance from the Hebron-Alden-Greenwood Fire Protection District was requested to assist with patient care and transportation.
Vucha said a LifeNet medical helicopter landed at the scene and transported one person to Javon Bea Hospital – Riverside in Rockford with critical, life-threatening injuries.
Two other people were transported by ambulance to Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital, with one in serious condition and the other with minor injuries.
The driver of the semi-truck declined medical evaluation at the scene.
The intersection and surrounding roadways were shut down in all directions for hours to allow emergency crews to safely treat patients, establish a landing zone for the medical helicopter and investigate the cause of the crash, Vucha said.
The sheriff’s office said Route 14 was shut down between Marawood Drive and Dimmel Road in both directions before being reopened around 9:45 p.m.
The Woodstock Fire/Rescue District thanked the Hebron-Alden-Greenwood Fire Protection District for providing ambulance assistance and the Huntley Fire Protection District and Wonder Lake Fire Protection District for providing change-of-quarters coverage while fire crews remained committed at the scene.
The circumstances surrounding the crash remain under investigation by the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office, which has not released information on the incident as of Tuesday morning.