Drivers hit two Elgin house; dog killed

Two homes in Elgin were red-tagged last weekend after they were hit by cars in two separate accidents, one of which killed a pet hound dog.

Valencia Graves, 48, of the 700 of block of Jefferson Avenue, lost control just after 5:30 a.m. Saturday and slammed into an electricity pole and then into a house on the 200 block of North Liberty Street, Elgin Police Cmdr. Dan O'Shea said.

No occupants of the home were injured, he said. The power lines came down and ComEd repaired the damage, he said.

Graves was charged with driving on the sidewalk and transportation of open alcohol in a motor vehicle, he said.

Both Graves and a male passenger were taken to a hospital with complaints of minor injuries, he said.

In the second accident, a pet hound dog was killed at about 12:10 p.m. Sunday after Chanel Hanley, 21, of the 800 block of Bode Road, backed through a fence, across the backyard and through a sliding-glass door into a house on the 800 block of Park Bluff Circle, O'Shea said.

No people were injured, but the dog was found dead inside the house, he said.

Hanley was charged with having no valid driver's license, operating an uninsured vehicle and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, he said.

Fire department officials red-tagged both homes, Elgin Senior Planner Sarosh Saher said.

The city's code enforcement staff was due to follow-up with an assessment of the work to be performed before both homes are deemed habitable, Saher said.

“This is the first time I'm hearing about it (happening) on the same weekend,” he said.

“This is a very unusual situation.”