At least one person was killed and four others suffered injuries in a six-vehicle chain-reaction crash Saturday afternoon on the Tri-State Tollway in Willow Springs, state police said.
The accident occurred at approximately 12:09 p.m. in the southbound lanes of I-294 near milepost 22.25.
According to Illinois State Police, a Chevrolet Impala was traveling southbound when for unknown reason, the driver lost control and sideswiped a Volkswagen Jetta, which was traveling in the second from left lane.
The impact caused the Impala to veer to the left and strike the concrete median barrier. The Impala then became airborne and struck a Ford F-150 in the northbound lanes, ISP stated.
A Hyundai Elantra, traveling behind the F-150, swerved toward the second lane from the left and was struck by the Impala. A Honda CRV was behind the Elantra and was struck head-on by the Impala, according to police.
A Hino box truck was in the third lane and struck the passenger side of the CRV.
The passenger of the CRV, a 64-year-old woman from Bloomingdale, was taken to a hospital where she died from her injuries.
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The driver of the Impala, a 29-year-old man from Palos Heights, and the driver of the CRV, a 62-year-old man from Bloomingdale, went to the hospital with serious injuries.
The passenger of the Jetta, a 69-year-old man from Villa Park, was taken to the hospital with minor injuries and has since been released.
The driver of the box truck, a 43-year-old man from Chicago, was also hospitalized with minor injuries.
The crash remains under investigation Saturday evening. Both the northbound and southbound lanes of I-294 were closed for several hours, but had reopened as of 5:34 p.m.
