Man killed, two children critically injured in head-on crash in Beach Park

A Zion man was killed and two boys were critically injured in a head-on crash Friday evening in Beach Park.

Four vehicles were involved in the crash at about 6:45 p.m. on Green Bay Road north of Wadsworth Road, according to Lake County sheriff's Lt. Chris Covelli.

A preliminary investigation showed that a 2017 Jeep Patriot driven by a 50-year-old Zion woman was illegally passing a tow truck towing a semitrailer. Both vehicles were traveling north and the driver of the Jeep was attempting to pass in the southbound lanes, Covelli said.

The Jeep collided head-on with a 2014 Kia Soul driven by a 49-year-old Zion man. The crash caused the Jeep to rotate and strike the tow truck driven by a 35-year-old man from Kenosha, Wisconsin, Covelli said.

The Jeep also collided with a Ford Explorer, driven by a 58-year-old woman of unincorporated Lake County, which was traveling south on Green Bay Road directly behind the Kia.

Two boys, aged 11 and 13, both of Zion, were passengers in the Kia. Neither was restrained, Covelli said, and both suffered critical injuries.

The 11-year-old was taken by medical helicopter to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge. The 13-year-old was taken by ambulance to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville.

The Kia driver was taken by ambulance to Vista East Hospital in Waukegan, where he later was pronounced dead, Covelli said.

The Jeep driver was taken to Condell and a 60-year old female passenger from Kenosha was taken to Vista East. Both had minor injuries, Covelli said.

The driver of the Ford and a passenger, a 24-year-old man of unincorporated Lake County, were taken to Vista East with minor injuries. The driver of the tow truck wasn't injured, Covelli said.

An autopsy for the driver of the Kia is scheduled for Tuesday by the Lake County coroner. The Lake County Sheriff's Office Technical Crash Investigations Unit is investigating.