Jan. 11--One person died and several others were injured after a wrong-way driver rammed into other cars early Sunday on the Eisenhower Expressway in west suburban Forest Park, police said.
The three-vehicle crash happened about 4:40 a.m. in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 290 near the Des Plaines Avenue exit, said Illinois State Police Trooper Ark Wozniak.
The crash involved a green 1998 Chevrolet Trail Blazer, a white 2006 Ford Econoline E350 and a white 2005 Chevrolet Trail Blazer, said Illinois State Police spokeswoman Monique Bond.
Juan Carlos Salazar, 29, of 6300 block of South Archer Avenue, who was a front-seat passenger in the Ford, was killed in the crash and pronounced dead at 5:25 a.m. at the scene, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office and police.
The other people who were injured in the crash were taken to area hospitals with injuries that weren't life-threatening, police said.
All eastbound lanes on I-290 in the area were shut down as well as two westbound lanes, Wozniak said, but as of 10:30 a.m., all lanes had reopened.
Preliminary reports indicate the wrong-way driver is a 22-year-old Chicago man. Officials said alcohol is believed to be a factor in the crash and charges were pending.
