A man who was missing from the scene of a car crash in suburban Des Plaines early Monday was discovered hours later in the parking lot of a nearby hospital, officials said.
Authorities said employees at Chicago Behavioral Hospital on Wilson Lane spotted the man, barefoot and without a shirt or coat at around 7:30 a.m. and alerted police.
The man had injuries consistent with a vehicle crash, Officer Michael Heidkamp of the Des Plaines Police Department, said at a news conference Monday morning, and he corroborated that he was associated with an earlier crash nearby.
Crews responded to a crash around 2:20 a.m. near the intersection of Rand Road and Ballard Road, according to Des Plaines Fire Chief Alan Wax.
On arrival, Wax said first responders discovered a vehicle that had a “significant crash and came to rest in the woods.” The car was traveling westbound on Ballard Road when it went off the roadway, striking a power box and utility pole, according to police.
One woman inside the car was extricated from the front passenger seat and taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, where she was listed in serious condition, officials said.
That woman told emergency personnel that there were two other people in the car with her, according to Wax, though police later said based on statements made by the man found at the hospital, the third individual was dropped off prior to the crash.
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Crews searched the woods with flashlights and police K9s, Wax said, before the man was discovered several hours later. Neither the man's nor the woman's injuries were thought to be life-threatening, according to police.
The cause of the crash remained under investigation, though Wax said it appeared to be a high-speed impact.
"In order to accomplish what it accomplished, the vehicle was most likely over the speed limit," Heidkamp said.
Neither person involved made any admissions as to who was driving at the time of the crash, Heidkamp added. Charges were pending, he said, though it was unclear which person was facing charges or what they may be.
Further details, including identifying information on the two people involved, were not immediately available.
