MARCH 6, 2015
LONG GROVE, ILLINOIS
No one was hurt when an 18-wheel rig crashed into the back
of a car Friday morning in Long Grove, causing a vehicular fire.
According to reports from Long Grove Fire Protection
District deputy chief Marc Small and Lake County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Curtis
Gregory, a man was driving his car north on Illinois Route 83 between Aptakisic
and Hilltop roads shortly before 5 a.m. when the vehicle suddenly lost power.
There is little curbside to pull over onto in that area, so
the man turned his hazard flashers on and left his vehicle, but it was
obstructing its lane. As the “Hilltop Road” title indicates, this area is at
the top of a hill, which obstructs oncoming vehicles’ visibility.
The car battery’s remaining power drained and the flashers’
light dwindled to nothing, Gregory said. Within minutes, a tractor-trailer
crashed into the rear of the car and drove over its trunk.
Unharmed, the truck driver stayed in his cab and called 911,
Small wrote in his report—until flames started seeping out of his engine
compartment. The fire spread quickly to the crushed car underneath.
“The car and cab of the truck were both destroyed by fire,”
Small wrote.
Firefighters used 2,000 gallons of water to extinguish the
flames. Gregory noted that the water “froze instantly” on Route 83’s northbound
lanes, forcing deputies to close it off to traffic until salt trucks could
arrive.
Paramedics examined the two drivers, who declined treatment.
Gregory said he could not determine what had caused the car to stop in the
street.