Nov. 19--Five children and two adults were critically injured in a single-car crash in Jackson Park overnight Tuesday, authorities said.
Firefighters were called to the scene of the accident at East Marquette Drive and South Richards Drive about midnight and found a Mercury minivan on fire, fire officials said.
The minivan was travelling westbound on Marquette Drive when the driver lost control and crashed into a tree, said Chicago Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford. Two adults and five children were riding in the minivan when it crashed, Langford said.
The adults and all the children had made it out of the minivan by the time emergency crews arrived. All were taken to area hospitals in serious-to-critical condition, Langford said. Police described the injuries as non-life threatening.
The five children, whose ages were not immediately known, were taken to Lurie Children's Hospital and Comer Children's Hospital, and the two adults were taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Langford said. Ages and genders for the seven people were not immediately available.
After crews put out the fire, the burned-out Mercury minivan sat crumpled against a tree while firefighters and police finished their work on the scene. Two child car seats rested just outside the minivan, and shattered glass covered a nearby sidewalk.
As of 1 a.m., a portion of Marquette Drive just west of South Lake Shore Drive was shut off to traffic.
