Man suffers life-threatening injuries in crash on Route 6

A 30-year-old man was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries resulting from a two-vehicle crash in front of Ecolab in Joliet.

About 1:01 a.m. Saturday, crews with Joliet Fire Department responded to a reported head-on collision in the 3300 block of Eammes Road, in front of Ecolab, Joliet Fire Chief Greg Blaskey said.

When the crews arrived, they found a van was on its side and a car was in the tree line next to the roadway, Blaskey said.

A preliminary police investigation of the crash determined that a van driven by Virgilio Burizar, 22, of South Carolina was traveling in the eastbound direction on Route 6 and approaching Hollywood Boulevard, according to Joliet police Sgt. Dwayne English.

At that time, the van “veered into the westbound lanes of Route 6 and struck a westbound sedan head on,” English said. The sedan was driven by a 27-year-old Minooka man.

The collision caused the sedan to “roll over and veer off the roadway,” English said.

Burizar was the only occupant of the van and he climbed out before the arrival of fire crews, Blaskey said. He suffered minor injuries and he was taken to AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet in good condition.

Burizar was preliminarily cited for improper lane usage, English said.

The 27-year-old driver of the other vehicle had minor injuries and he was taken to the same hospital in good condition, Blaskey said.

A 30-year-old passenger from Romeoville was pinned in the vehicle and he needed to be extricated, which took 20 minutes because of “extensive damage to the car,” Blaskey said.

He was taken to the hospital in critical condition, he said.

English said the passenger “was later flown to Loyola Medical Center for further treatment.”

The Joliet Police traffic unit is investigating the crash.