Multiple-vehicle crash in Wayne causes serious injuries

WAYNE – A chaotic multi-vehicle crash with serious injuries occurred Saturday morning on Dunham Road north of Army Trail Road in Wayne, officials said.

Fox River & Countryside Fire Rescue District Fire Chief John Nixon said the accident scene was spread 100 yards along the roadway.

“The first 911 call came in at 10:20 a.m. We sent two fire engines and two ambulances,” Nixon said. “When we arrived on the scene, it was utter chaos. … There were multiple victims and they were doing triage for the most seriously injured.”

The accident occurred when a small black SUV stopped while headed south on Dunham Road and was rear-ended by a red SUV, Nixon said. The black SUV had a woman and two children in it, he said.

The red SUV bounced off the black SUV and hit a semi-truck carrying gravel, then flipped over in a ditch. Then a garbage truck also hit the front end of the black SUV, spun off the road and ran into a big tree, trapping a driver and passenger inside, Nixon said.

The red SUV had three people in it who had minor injuries and did not need extrication, he said.

“The woman in the small black SUV and her family were lucky,” Nixon said. “The whole front of her car was crushed and she was able to be helped out of it. The lady in the black SUV was in critical condition and had to be helped out of the vehicle.”

She was transported to the Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital in Geneva, Nixon said.

“The front of the garbage truck does not have a whole lot of protection. The two men in the truck were pinned when the truck’s dashboard collapsed on them and they could not get out,” Nixon said. “We spent a great deal of time and used mechanical tools to cut the front apart to extricate them. … It took the better part of 90 minutes to get them free from the vehicle. … It was a long extrication.”

The driver suffered major trauma to his lower extremities and was flown by helicopter to Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, Nixon said.

The passenger was taken to an area hospital, he said. The driver of the gravel truck also had minor injuries, he said.

“We worked out there for three hours to secure the scene. The last patient was taken out two hours after the accident,” Nixon said. “The road was closed until probably 3 p.m.”

Other departments that assisted were South Elgin & Countryside Fire Protection District, which sent a fire engine and an ambulance; the Carol Stream Fire Department sent its heavy rescue squad; Elburn and Countryside Fire Protection District; the Bartlett Fire Protection District; and the St. Charles Fire Department. Nixon said three other ambulances also attended, but he was not sure what districts they were from.

“Because of the high humidity and the heat, we gave firefighters rehabilitation breaks to hydrate them with lots of water,” Nixon said. “One of our personnel became very dehydrated and was taken to Delnor for IV fluid replacement. He was released. Another firefighter from a neighboring community had a cut hand and had to be treated.”

The same morning, a second 911 call came in at 11:13 a.m. for another crash two miles away at Army Trail and Powis Road, Nixon said.

“It’s a very difficult intersection. Apparently a car was headed through the intersection and was struck in the side and flipped over on its roof,” Nixon said. “The drivers were able to get out safely and both drivers did not require transport. We had help from West Chicago and Streamwood fire departments on that one.”

While Fox River and Countryside personnel were at the first and second accident scenes, Pingree Grove and Burlington fire departments were providing back-up.

“And during this whole mess, a third ambulance call came in that Burlington handled,” Nixon said. “A horse and rider were injured – in Wayne.”