Train Drags Car For Nearly A Mile After Collision: Police

By Sam Borcia, the Lake & McHenry County Scanner

Police say a driver fled the scene after their car hit a train, causing the car to be dragged for almost a mile near Harvard Wednesday evening.

The Harvard Fire Protection District and McHenry County Sheriff’s Office responded around 9:20 p.m. Wednesday to the 6500 block of South Oak Grove Road in unincorporated Harvard. McHenry County Sheriff’s Deputy Kevin Byrnes said deputies responded to the railroad crossing for a report of a car that crashed into a train.

A witness told deputies that they saw a Chevrolet Impala crash into the side of a slow-moving eastbound Union Pacific train car, Byrnes said. The vehicle was then dragged by the train for approximately a mile and came to a rest near Lawrence Road and Ramer Road.

The witness reported they saw the driver exit the vehicle and walk away from the scene after talking to them, Byrnes said. The Union Pacific Railroad was notified and the train was stopped.

Byrnes said deputies conducted an extensive search for the driver for several hours but he was never located.

The crash investigation is still ongoing by the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office Patrol Division.

Lake and McHenry County Scanner is a local breaking news website covering issues that matter such as shootings, stabbings, house fires, kidnappings, car accidents, and more around Lake County and McHenry County.