A preliminary investigation found a medical emergency may have contributed to a crash Thursday in which an 84-year-old Glen Ellyn man was killed and three other people were hospitalized, Oak Brook police said Friday.
Chen Tien, of Glen Ellyn, had no passengers in his silver Toyota Prius when he was hit about 1:24 p.m. by a red Chevrolet pickup truck driven by a 53-year-old Park Forest man at Midwest Road and 22nd Street, according to Oak Brook police.
The truck was headed north on Midwest Road and went through a red light at 22nd Street, said Oak Brook Police Officer Garrett Church. The truck hit the Prius, along with a Ford Taurus carrying two Chicago residents, ages 52 and 57, and a gray Lexus driven by a 74-year-old Hinsdale man, Church said.
Church said the three vehicles that the truck hit were traveling west on 22nd Street. The driver of the truck, along with Tien and the two Chicago residents, were taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, Church said. Tien was pronounced dead at the hospital. The Hinsdale man refused medical attention.
"Witnesses reported that the red Chevy truck was driving erratically, at least from 31st Street," Church said. "The westbound cars were in the middle of the intersection when they were struck."
When first responders arrived on the scene, officers found the red pickup truck resting on top of the Prius and the Ford Taurus' driver's side door caved in at the front of the pickup, Church said.
"We have strong reason to believe there was a medical emergency experienced by the driver of the truck, but we're not going to leave any stone unturned in investigating all aspects of this," Church said.
Church could not say what the nature of the medical emergency might have been.
He said additional details about the cause of the crash and any criminal charges will be pending lab test results, which could take up to a few weeks.
Church said the two people from the Ford Taurus and the driver of the pickup truck are stable.