One dead, three injured in crash on Route 41 in Lake Forest

Route 41 has been reopened in Lake Forest after a traffic crash that left one person dead and three people injured closed the roadway early Friday, authorities said.

Lake Forest police and fire responded to the single-vehicle crash on northbound Route 41, north of Westleigh Road, at 3:56 a.m.

Authorities said the vehicle appeared to have been heading north when it left the highway at a bend in the road. It hit several trees before coming to a rest down a steep embankment.

Deputy Police Chief Rob Copeland said the vehicle also caught fire during the crash.

Three occupants of the vehicle were located by responding units and transported to the hospital. A fourth person who was in the vehicle died at the scene.

The Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team is working with Lake Forest Police to investigate the crash.

Identification of all four people is ongoing.

Northbound Route 41 was shut down for nearly six hours because of the investigation. Traffic was diverted during the morning rush hour onto Westleigh Road.